Food Consumption Pattern and Dietary Diversity in Nepal: Implications for Nutrition Security

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 397-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anjani Kumar ◽  
Praduman Kumar ◽  
P. K. Joshi

This article examines the status, progress and challenges of managing food and nutrition security in Nepal, one of the least developed countries, by using data from the national living standards surveys conducted jointly by Government of Nepal and World Bank. Nepal, like many other developing countries, is struggling to ensure food and nutrition security. This study analyses the dimensions of food security in terms of availability, access and utilization (nutritional outcome). The analysis shows that the trends in food consumption pattern and nutritional intake have changed significantly overtime. The diversity in dietary pattern has become more apparent over time and the dietary diversity depicts a positive impact on nutritional outcome.

Social Change ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 396-419
Author(s):  
Swati Dutta ◽  
Sunil Kumar Mishra

The level of food diversity in any household is an indicator of its healthy dietary habits. It depends on demographic and socio-economic conditions, geographic location, consumption habits and expenditure, cultural practices, income, food prices and the availability, access and utilisation of food. Against this backdrop, our study analyses the pattern of food consumption, dietary diversity, food frequency and the Recommended Dietary Allowance in 12 villages located in 6 districts of Bihar to understand the socio-economic determinants of a household’s food security. The results show that the diversity of food consumption is mainly dependent on the consumption of cereals across various socio-economic classes. Our analysis also emphasises the importance of schemes like the Public Distribution System which has a positive influence on food security outcomes of a household. The logistic regression results show that if the household belongs to the richest consumption class, with better education levels and more salaried members, then the probability of better food and nutrition security is high. In contrast, the low social status of a household, especially those from a Scheduled Caste background, will reveal reduced household food security.


Author(s):  
R. K. Naresh ◽  
Saurabh Tyagi ◽  
M. Sharath Chandra ◽  
B. Chandra Shekar ◽  
Pradeep Kumar Singh ◽  
...  

The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting food and nutrition security through economic and social systems shocks, food system disruptions and gaps in coverage of essential health and nutrition services. Food systems in low- and middle-income groups must adapt and strengthen food and nutrition security in the wake of COVID-19. Smallholder farmers are a crucial part of the food value chain in India, as well as a critical element of the global food system. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought new risks that threaten livelihoods as well as food security. Post the rabi harvest in April, farmers prepare for the next (kharif) season in May. However, the COVID-19 induced disruptions have reduced production capacity for farm inputs and have led to an increase in price, making these resources inaccessible to smallholder and marginal farmers in the country. The corona-virus pandemic has caused a global reduction in economic activity and although this is major cause for concern, the ramping down of human activity appears to have had a positive impact on the environment. The COVID-19 lockdown has several social and economic effects. Additionally, COVID-19 has caused several impacts on global migration. Carbon emissions have dropped, and the COVID-19 lockdown has led to an improvement in air quality and a reduction in water pollution in many cities around the globe. We found that the COVID-19 lockdown in India has primarily impacted farmers’ ability to sell their crops and livestock products and decreased daily wages and dietary diversity. In this context, we aim to synthesize the early evidence of the COVID-19 impact on the Indian agricultural system viz., production, marketing and consumption followed by a set of potential strategies to recover and prosper post-pandemic. Findings indicate that the pandemic has affected production and marketing through labour and logistical constraints, while the negative income shock restricted access to markets and increased prices of food commodities affecting the consumption pattern.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abyiot Teklu ◽  
Belay Simane ◽  
Mintewab Bezabih

Abstract Background: Food insecurity remains a major challenge to smallholder farmers in the face of changing climate in the Upper Blue Nile Highlands of Ethiopia. To improve food and nutrition security of climate change vulnerable smallholder farmers in eastern Ethiopia, several climate-smart agriculture (CSA) innovations have been adopted and scaled-up. However, the impact of these innovations on household food and nutritional security was not systematically studied. This study examined the impact of selected CSA technologies on household food and nutrition security. Cross-sectional data were generated from 424 randomly selected rural smallholder agriculture households in the five selected agroecosystems of the Upper Blue Nile Highlands of Ethiopia. The study employed propensity score matching and endogenous switching regression estimation models. Results: Households that practiced crop residue management had an 8.46 higher Food Consumption Score (FCS) and a 0.4 higher Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) than non-adopters. Similarly, households who adopted compost and agroforestry had a 0.462 and 0.446 higher Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) than non-adopters, respectively. The endogenous switching regression analysis result showed that households that practiced crop residue management had an 22.6 higher Food Consumption Score (FCS) and a 2.2 higher Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) than non-adopters. Similarly, households who adopted physical SWC had a 2.3 higher Food Consumption Score (FCS) than non-adopters. Whereas, compost and agroforestry had a 0.28 and 2.12 higher Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS) than non-adopters, respectively. Conclusions: This shows that households adopting CSA innovations are more likely to have higher food security compared to non-adopters. This suggests that promotion and scale-up of CSA innovations in the study area can enhance household food and nutrition security.


Author(s):  
Fatai Abiola Sowunmi ◽  
Funmi Lydia Adeduntan

The study examined the impact of rural-urban migration on the food consumption pattern of farming households. The study revealed that 73.8% of the households had migrants, while 80.2% of the migrants were male. The highest level of education of most of the migrants was secondary school (71.4%). The study showed that the major reason (63.3%) for migration was for job. The average remittance sent per year was ₦108,119.14. The study revealed that household expenditure on carbohydrate food group accounted for 54.4% of the total households' expenditure on food. The average dietary diversity indices for the migrant (0.345) and non-migrant (0.346) households were low. The study revealed that migration (short and long term) positively influenced per capita food expenditure of respondent. Despite the remittance from some of the migrants, the need to develop the rural areas in terms of provision of basic infrastructures by government is imperative in order to reduce rural-urban migration.


2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 660-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thalia M Sparling ◽  
Jillian L Waid ◽  
Amanda S Wendt ◽  
Sabine Gabrysch

AbstractObjective:To quantify the relationship between screening positive for depression and several indicators of the food and nutrition environment in Bangladesh.Design:We used cross-sectional data from the Food and Agricultural Approaches to Reducing Malnutrition (FAARM) trial in Bangladesh to examine the association of depression in non-peripartum (NPW) and peripartum women (PW) with food and nutrition security using multivariable logistic regression and dominance analysis.Setting:Rural north-eastern Bangladesh.Participants:Women of reproductive age.Results:Of 2599 women, 40 % were pregnant or up to 1 year postpartum, while 60 % were not peripartum. Overall, 20 % of women screened positive for major depression. In the dominance analysis, indicators of food and nutrition security were among the strongest explanatory factors of depression. Food insecurity (HFIAS) and poor household food consumption (FCS) were associated with more than double the odds of depression (HFIAS: NPW OR = 2·74 and PW OR = 3·22; FCS: NPW OR = 2·38 and PW OR = 2·44). Low dietary diversity (<5 food groups) was associated with approximately double the odds of depression in NPW (OR = 1·80) and PW (OR = 1·99). Consumption of dairy, eggs, fish, vitamin A-rich and vitamin C-rich foods was associated with reduced odds of depression. Anaemia was not associated with depression. Low BMI (<18·5 kg/m2) was also associated with depression (NPW: OR = 1·40).Conclusions:Depression among women in Bangladesh was associated with many aspects of food and nutrition security, also after controlling for socio-economic factors. Further investigation into the direction of causality and interventions to improve diets and reduce depression among women in low- and middle-income countries are urgently needed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gershom Endelani Mwalupaso ◽  
Shangao Wang ◽  
Aseres Mamo Eshetie ◽  
Xu Tian

Improving food and nutrition security in Sub-Saharan Africa’s farm households has become a prominent priority subject for researchers and policymakers alike. Interestingly, it is realized through enhancement in dietary diversity and quality. To this end, better access to food and information is considered a prerequisite. Given that mobile phone coverage offers new prospects for increasing rural households’ access to information, can informatization (mobile phone used as a concrete example) possibly influence dietary diversity and quality? Cross-sectional data collected from farm households in Zambia is used to address this topic by applying the ordinary least square and endogenous switching regression (ESR). Household dietary diversity score was constructed based on a 7-days recall approach to measure consumption patterns. Our robust regression result indicates that mobile phone use positively and significantly influences dietary diversity and quality. Particularly, gender-disaggregated regression reveals that male-headed households have stronger positive associations than their counterparts. We also find that in comparison to non-adopters, adopters consume three more foods weekly. This is attributable to the income gains and increased frequency in information access on account of mobile phone adoption. Conversely, average consumption would increase by two more foods weekly if mobile phones were adopted in non-adopting households. Therefore, our study puts forwards substantial empirical evidence to warrant policy formulation directed at promoting informatization among farm households. Eventually, this could possibly recuperate dynamism in agricultural food production as food and nutrition security in farm households ameliorates.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ion Raluca Andreea

This article aims to highlight what macroeconomics hides beyond the statistical data in respect to food and nutrition security in Romania, in the attempt to answer the question whether both food security and nutrition security have been achieved. The need of pursuing such an issue has emerged from the fact that we know too little about nutrition security, although there is a strong evidence base providing reliable information on food security. The main findings reveal that hardly all the people have economic access to safe, sufficient, nutritious food, that 15.3 percent live on less than $2.9 a day, while the average food consumption fits into a budget of $3.28 a day. People earning $2.9 a day have limited dietary choices; consequently, special scenarios for their diets have been worked out. The relevance of this article lies in its capacity to bring a clearer understanding of the links between food security and nutrition and to emphasize, in the end, that nutrition is a significant driver of food security.


2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nur Firdaus ◽  
Bintang Dwitya Cahyono

<p><em>Food is an essential need and its role is prominent to human life. In addition, food may have a positive contribution to develop human resources. According to Food Security Agency (Badan Ketahanan Pangan/ BKP), food consumption pattern should meet nutrition standards and follow desirable dietary pattern (Pola Pangan Harapan/ PPH). PPH indicates an overview of food that is consumed by people whether its contains good nutrient or not. This study aims to analyze food consumption pattern and dietary diversity in DI Yogyakarta and East  Nusa Tenggara; and how they influence food security. The household data survey (Susenas) 2014 showed that PPH scores for DI Yogyakarta is higher than East Nusa Tenggara. From these scores, DI Yogyakarta has better food consumption pattern and leads to diverse food; in contrast, food consumption in East Nusa Tenggara has not lead to a healthy pattern. In DI Yogyakarta, people have been diversifying their consumption in accordance with the concept of PPH. This means that people have realized to meet their nutrition by consuming nutritious foods and help them not only to achieve food security but also nutrition security. Moreover, people have used local-based food to be consumed so that they do not depend on their current food. Whilst, in East Nusa Tenggara, people tend to meet their needs regardless their food has good nutrition or not. In addition, dietary diversity or PPH is influenced by some factors, such as education, family size, age of the household head, and expenditure.</em> These results confirm that <em>diverse consumption pattern showed high food security and those factors should be concerned to improve the quality of food consumption. </em></p>


2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 471-492 ◽  
Author(s):  
CHRIS DEEMING

AbstractSecuring adequate food and nutrition is essential for the maintenance of our health and function in society. This article examines the household characteristics associated with food and nutrition security in the United Kingdom population aged 60 years and over. Data are taken from the Expenditure and Food Survey, a continuous cross-sectional survey of household expenditure, food consumption and income. Survey data for 2002–05 provided a total sample of 5,600 households. Household food consumption is evaluated using national Dietary Reference Values recommended by the Department of Health. A multivariate logistic regression model examines the risk of being food and nutrition insecure by individual and household characteristics. The results suggest that certain sections of the older population are significantly more at risk of food insecurity than others: low-income households, the oldest-old, elderly from black and minority ethnic groups, those with a disability and men living alone. Influencing nutrition of elderly people in the home is complex and poses a major challenge to social policy. Coordinated activity at national and local levels will be required to help ensure that some of the most vulnerable members of society achieve healthy balanced diets.


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