Zinc is an essential micronutrient for living organisms. After vitamin A, iron and iodine, zinc is arguably the next most important nutrient of public health interest, reputed to be capable of reducing global child mortality by 4% overall. As such, no one in clinical or community pediatrics can ignore zinc. This issue of Annales attempts to reveal both the beauty marks and the warts across the surface of our growing understanding of zinc in pediatric medicine and public health.
