Raise awareness about what constitutes balanced nutrition
Monday, 1 November 2010
MATTERS of people's diet and nutrition are as complex and variable as human physiology, habits and livelihoods, but hunger and malnourishment is believed to be not simply the result of a lack of food supply, but more the result of 'entitlements' -- the lack of the ability to command and obtain food, rather than declining availability. But another crucial factor in Bangladesh is the widespread lack of understanding about what constitutes 'balanced' nutrition throughout a person's life.
Research findings on the nutritional status of the majority of Bangladesh's people, over recent years of extraordinary price hike of basic foods, repeats the obvious -- that the poorest have had to forgo fish, meat, milk, eggs and lentils altogether. They tried to meet their calorie needs somehow only with the staple rice and the cheapest vegetables. One study, conducted under the auspices of the government's Department of Public Health and Nutrition and ICDDRB, monitored the meals of 3600 families spread over Dhaka slums and villages in Kurigram, Barguna and Patherghata during a two-month period. The purpose was to determine the impact of rising food prices on the women and children. Another study on the same theme, but confined to mothers and their children, was reportedly conducted under Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) in partnership with the UK Department for International Development (DFID). Both found that, as basic food prices skyrocketed, people coped with the crisis by cutting intake, in terms of quantity as well as quality, severely compromising their health and nutrition status.
According to the Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey (BDHS) a couple years of back or more, 43 per cent of children under five bear the signs of chronic malnutrition, that is, 'stunting'; 30 per cent of women are 'abnormally thin' and another 12 per cent 'moderately or severely thin'. There are other sobering details that clearly establish the stark truth that large sections of the population are suffering silently from persistent hunger, deprived in terms of both micro (vitamins and minerals) and macro (proteins, carbohydrates and fats) nutrients and also in terms of quality and quantity of food intake. Far too many people are under-fed and ill-fed at all times and this is not necessarily due to poverty alone. General lack of understanding about the importance of balanced nutrition, and what constitutes it, is a major factor. This must be addressed urgently if the nation is to be developed properly.
A nation's food security should include, in addition to the staple grains, adequate and affordable supplies of pulses or lentils -- known as ' the poor man's protein' -- as well as nuts, roots, fruits and vegetables, and of course, enough fish and meat, eggs and milk that are within the buying capacity of most, rather than the minority of well-to-do. People may be quite well-fed even without expensive fish and meat in the daily diet. Research conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, in fact, revealed that traditional plant-based diets that were rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits and nuts, and supplemented by only small amounts of animal products, such as milk and eggs, were associated with longevity and little nutrition-related diseases.
Projects in the nutrition sector over the past decades have unfortunately little to show in terms of raising sustained awareness about the need for balanced food intake. This must be rectified for the inter-generational impact of nutritional deficiencies can be devastating for the nation as a whole, harming not only the body but also the intellect as well. Knowing how little of proper nutrients it takes to protect the mental, physical ad spiritual well-being of human beings, it is unacceptable that successive governments should be so nonchalant about this crucial aspect of human resource building. Positive and urgent interventions are called for.
Research findings on the nutritional status of the majority of Bangladesh's people, over recent years of extraordinary price hike of basic foods, repeats the obvious -- that the poorest have had to forgo fish, meat, milk, eggs and lentils altogether. They tried to meet their calorie needs somehow only with the staple rice and the cheapest vegetables. One study, conducted under the auspices of the government's Department of Public Health and Nutrition and ICDDRB, monitored the meals of 3600 families spread over Dhaka slums and villages in Kurigram, Barguna and Patherghata during a two-month period. The purpose was to determine the impact of rising food prices on the women and children. Another study on the same theme, but confined to mothers and their children, was reportedly conducted under Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) in partnership with the UK Department for International Development (DFID). Both found that, as basic food prices skyrocketed, people coped with the crisis by cutting intake, in terms of quantity as well as quality, severely compromising their health and nutrition status.
According to the Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey (BDHS) a couple years of back or more, 43 per cent of children under five bear the signs of chronic malnutrition, that is, 'stunting'; 30 per cent of women are 'abnormally thin' and another 12 per cent 'moderately or severely thin'. There are other sobering details that clearly establish the stark truth that large sections of the population are suffering silently from persistent hunger, deprived in terms of both micro (vitamins and minerals) and macro (proteins, carbohydrates and fats) nutrients and also in terms of quality and quantity of food intake. Far too many people are under-fed and ill-fed at all times and this is not necessarily due to poverty alone. General lack of understanding about the importance of balanced nutrition, and what constitutes it, is a major factor. This must be addressed urgently if the nation is to be developed properly.
A nation's food security should include, in addition to the staple grains, adequate and affordable supplies of pulses or lentils -- known as ' the poor man's protein' -- as well as nuts, roots, fruits and vegetables, and of course, enough fish and meat, eggs and milk that are within the buying capacity of most, rather than the minority of well-to-do. People may be quite well-fed even without expensive fish and meat in the daily diet. Research conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, in fact, revealed that traditional plant-based diets that were rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits and nuts, and supplemented by only small amounts of animal products, such as milk and eggs, were associated with longevity and little nutrition-related diseases.
Projects in the nutrition sector over the past decades have unfortunately little to show in terms of raising sustained awareness about the need for balanced food intake. This must be rectified for the inter-generational impact of nutritional deficiencies can be devastating for the nation as a whole, harming not only the body but also the intellect as well. Knowing how little of proper nutrients it takes to protect the mental, physical ad spiritual well-being of human beings, it is unacceptable that successive governments should be so nonchalant about this crucial aspect of human resource building. Positive and urgent interventions are called for.