Minimum Acceptable Diet (MAD)

Indicator Phrasing

% of children 6–23 months of age who received a Minimum Acceptable Diet the previous day and night

% d'enfants de 6 à 23 mois ayant reçu un Apport Alimentaire Minimum Acceptable le jour et la nuit précédents

% de crianças entre 6 - 23 meses de idade que receberam uma dieta mínima aceitável no dia e noite anteriores

% dětí ve věku 6-23 měsíců, které v uplynulém dni a noci konzumovaly Minimální přijatelnou stravu

Indicator Phrasing

English: % of children 6–23 months of age who received a Minimum Acceptable Diet the previous day and night

French: % d'enfants de 6 à 23 mois ayant reçu un Apport Alimentaire Minimum Acceptable le jour et la nuit précédents

Portuguese: % de crianças entre 6 - 23 meses de idade que receberam uma dieta mínima aceitável no dia e noite anteriores

Czech: % dětí ve věku 6-23 měsíců, které v uplynulém dni a noci konzumovaly Minimální přijatelnou stravu

What is its purpose?

The indicator assesses the acceptability of a child's diet based on its micronutrient adequacy and meal frequency.

How to Collect and Analyse the Required Data

Any child whose diet meets the Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD) and the Minimum Meal Frequency (MMF) is considered to have a Minimum Acceptable Diet. For calculation of these two sub-indicators, please see guidance on MDD and MMF.

Calculate the indicator's value by dividing the number of children aged 6-23.99 months who consumed the Minimum Acceptable Diet (as defined above) by the total number of surveyed children aged 6-23.99 months (except those where "does not know" answer was provided) and multiplying the result by 100.

Disaggregate by

Disaggregate the data by sex, age groups, and wealth.

Important Comments

1) For important comments and recommendations, please visit the guidance websites for MMD and MMF.

2) MAD is one of ECHO's Key Outcome Indicators (see below).

Access Additional Guidance

WHO (2008) Indicators for Assessing IYCF Practices Part 1: Definitions (English version) (.pdf)
WHO (2008) Indicators for Assessing IYCF Practices Part 1: Definitions (French version) (.pdf)
WHO (2010) Indicators for Assessing IYCF Practices Part 2: Measurement (French version) (.pdf)
WHO (2010) Indicators for Assessing IYCF Practices Part 2: Measurement (English version) (.pdf)
unknown author (0) Brief Guidance to MAD (.pdf)
ECHO (2016) List of Key Outcome Indicators (KOI) (.pdf)
ECHO (2016) List of Key Outcome Indicators (KOI) - French version (.pdf)

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