Prevalence of Undernutrition and Its Associated Factors in Tribal Population of Gadchiroli (Vidarbha Region)

Introduction: Under nutrition can be well defined as a result of insufficient food intake, living life with hunger and repeated infection. It comprises being underweight for one’s age, stunted growth where subjects are too short for one’s age, hazardously thin wasted body and deficient in vitamins and minerals also known as micronutrient malnutrition. Aim: Prevalence Of Under nutrition And Its Associated Factors In Tribal Population Of Gadchiroli at Aheri (Ct), Gadchiroli (Vidarbha Region)District, Maharashtra. Materials And Methods: Family must consists of 1 children between ages of 1-6 years and their mothers must be available and willing to be interviewed were incorporated in the sample. Unwilling mothers were excluded. Three hundred study participants were included in the study. Results: The response rate was 100%. Among all participants, 153 (51%) and 147 (49%) were females and males, respectively. Out Of the total parents, 173(57.66%) could not read, 56 (18.66%) can only read and write, 47(15.66%) of them has completed primary education and 24(8%) has completed secondary school. Out of 300 participants, 123 (41%) had monthly income of less than 750 rupeees. Conclusion: Under nutrition was high among children below six years of age in gadchiroli, Aheri CT, Gadchiroli. Overall under nutrition was high found to be high and proper management should be done.

Priority micronutrient density in foods

Background: Despite concerted efforts to improve diet quality and reduce malnutrition, micronutrient deficiencies remain widespread globally, especially in low- and middle-income countries and among population groups with increased needs, where diets are often inadequate in iron, zinc, folate, vitamin A, calcium, and vitamin B12. There is a need to understand the density of these micronutrients and their bioavailability across diverse foods and the suitability of these foods to help meet requirements for populations with high burdens of micronutrient malnutrition.Objective: We aimed to identify the top food sources of these commonly lacking micronutrients, which are essential for optimal health, to support efforts to reduce micronutrient malnutrition among various populations globally.Methods: We built an aggregated global food composition database and calculated recommended nutrient intakes for five population groups with varying requirements. An approach was developed to rate foods according to their density in each and all priority micronutrients for various population groups with different nutrient requirements.Results: We find that the top sources of priority micronutrients are organs, small fish, dark green leafy vegetables, bivalves, crustaceans, goat, beef, eggs, milk, canned fish with bones, lamb, and mutton. Cheese, goat milk, and pork are also good sources, and to a lesser extent, yogurt, fresh fish, pulses, teff, and canned fish without bones.Conclusions: The results provide insight into which foods to prioritize to fill common micronutrient gaps and reduce undernutrition.

Vitamin D fortification: A perspective to improve immunity for COVID-19 infection

The need for food fortification arises because of close relation between human, health and food. The problem of prevalence of micronutrient malnutrition paved a way for food fortification to emerge and run in this technological era. This review focusses on the importance of Vitamin D in the present pandemic situation and the techniques used for fortification. The stability and bio-accessibility are the biggest question mark in the food fortification process as, a large proportion of Vitamin D is lost during food processing and storage due to environmental stress conditions such as temperature, pH, salt, oxygen and light. Vitamin D is an important micronutrient, is essentially required for the prevention of respiratory disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, cancer etc. which make it essential in enhancing immunity against COVID-19. Food fortification is the most efficient and safest method recognized by the WHO. The present review is an update on Vitamin D, in light of its role and importance and also fortification techniques adopted. Among all the techniques, nanoencapsulation is found to be an efficient one with the increasing demand.

Foliar Nutrient Supplementation with Micronutrient-Embedded Fertilizer Increases Biofortification in Eggplant Fruit and Soil Biological Activity While Enhancing Plant Productivity

Micronutrient malnutrition or hidden hunger remains a major global challenge for human health and wellness. The problem results from soil micro- and macro-nutrient deficiencies combined with imbalanced fertilizer use. Micronutrient-embedded NPK (MNENPK) complex fertilizers have been developed to overcome the macro- and micro-element deficiencies to enhance the yield and nutritive value of key crop products. We investigated the effect of foliar applications of an MNENPK fertilizer containing N, P, K, Fe, Zn & B in combination with traditional basal NPK fertilizers in terms of eggplant yield, fruit nutritive quality and on soil biological properties. Applying a multi-element foliar fertilizer improved the nutritional quality of eggplant fruit, with a significant increases in the concentration of Fe (+26%), Zn (+34%), K (+6%), Cu (+24%), and Mn (+27%), all of which are essential for human health. Increasing supply of essential micronutrients during the plant reproductive stages increased fruit yield, as a result of improved yield parameters. The positive effect of foliar fertilizing with MNENPK on soil biological parameters (soil microbial biomass carbon, dehydrogenase, alkaline phosphatase) also demonstrated its capacity to enhance soil fertility. This study suggests that foliar fertilizing with a multi-nutrient product such as MNENPK at eggplant flowering and fruiting stages, combined with the recommended-doses of NPK fertilizers is the optimal strategy to improve the nutritional quality of eggplant fruits and increase crop yields, both of which will contribute to reducing micronutrient malnutrition and hunger globally.

Benevolent Policies: Bureaucratic Politics and the International Dimensions of Social Policy Expansion

Research on the welfare state has devoted considerable attention to social policy expansion. However, little is known about why governments expand social policies serving groups with limited power on issues with low visibility. I call these “benevolent policies.” This class of social policies improves population well-being but produces minimal political gains for the governments enacting them. Why do governments expand benevolent policies if political incentives for reform are weak? I investigate this question by focusing on government responses to malnutrition. Drawing on nine months of fieldwork, including 71 interviews, I argue that the origins of policy expansion can be found in the government bureaucracy. Bureaucrats with technical expertise—technocrats—can play a defining role, deploying international pressure to court executive support and orchestrate policy change. Their actions help explain the Indonesian government’s unexpected expansion of nutrition policies, which serve low-income women and children and address micronutrient malnutrition.

Comparative Evaluation of the Proximate and Micro-Nutritional Benefits of Pawpaw, Carrots, Turmeric and Coconut

Natural products are essential components in the human diet providing vital micronutrients such as vitamins (A, B, C, E) and minerals (calcium, potassium, sodium etc.) that are essential for proper growth and development as well as playing other roles in normal body function or metabolism. The aim of this study is to evaluate the proximate and micronutrient composition of some selected plant samples: pawpaw, carrots, turmeric and coconut. The proximate and micronutrient composition of the different fruits evaluation was carried out using methods. Results obtained shows that carrot have the highest moisture content of 84.1%, pawpaw have the highest fiber content of 23.8%, crude protein content of 12.8% and ash content of 9.6%. Coconuts have the highest fat content of 43.0% and the highest carbohydrate content was recorded in turmeric (68.59%). Highest vitamin C content was recorded in pawpaw 60.3 mg, while coconut have the highest zinc (8.0 mg), copper (4.2 mg) and iron (21.3 mg) content. Carrots have the highest sodium content of 84.0 mg. These fruits are cheap and rich in several micronutrients thus consuming them often will help reduce micronutrient malnutrition. They can also be processed into various forms domestically and on industrial scale for juices, soups, etc and can also be used to complement other foods to improve both nutrient and sensory attribute.

Identification of High-Yielding Iron-Biofortified Open-Pollinated Varieties of Pearl Millet in West Africa

Pearl millet is a predominant food and fodder crop in West Africa. This study was carried out to test the newly developed open-pollinated varieties (OPVs) for field performance and stability for grain yield, grain iron (Fe), and grain zinc (Zn) contents across 10 locations in West Africa (i.e., Niger, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, Senegal, and Ghana). The test material consisted of 30 OPVs, of which 8 are Fe/Zn biofortified. The experiment was conducted in a randomized complete block design in three replications. ANOVA revealed highly significant variability for grain yield and micronutrient traits. The presence of genotype × environment (G × E) indicated that the expressions of traits are significantly influenced by both genetic and G × E factors, for grain Fe and Zn contents. Days to 50% flowering and plant height showed less G × E, suggesting these traits are largely under genetic control. The genotypes CHAKTI (46 days), ICTP 8203 (46 days), ICMV 177002 (50 days), ICMV 177003 (48 days), and Moro (53 days) had exhibited early flowering across locations leading to early physiological maturity. CHAKTI (1.42 t/ha yield; 62.24 mg/kg of grain Fe, 47.29 mg/kg of grain Zn) and ICMP 177002 (1.19 t/ha yield, 62.62 mg/kg of grain Fe, 46.62 mg/kg of grain Zn) have performed well for grain yield and also for micronutrients, across locations, compared with the check. Additive Main Effect and Multiplicative Interaction (AMMI) ANOVA revealed the highly significant genotypic differences, the mean sum of squares of environment, and its interaction with the genotypes. Based on the AMMI stability value (ASV), the most stable genotype is SOSAT-C88 (ASV = 0.04) for grain yield and resistance to downy mildew; mean grain yield and stability rankings (YSI) revealed that the genotypes CHAKTI, SOSAT-C88, and ICMV IS 99001 were high yielding and expressed stability across regions. The strong correlation (r = 0.98∗∗) of grain Fe and Zn contents that merits Fe-based selection is highly rewarding. CHAKTI outperformed over other genotypes for grain yield (71% higher), especially with early maturing varieties in West Africa, such as GB 8735, LCIC 9702, and Jirani, and for grain Fe (16.11% higher) and Zn (7% higher) contents across locations, and made a candidate of high-iron variety to be promoted for combating the micronutrient malnutrition in West and Central Africa (WCA).

Micronutrient Malnutrition – A Glimpse on the Current Strategies and Future Prospects

The inadequacy of micronutrients, namely essential vitamins and minerals in the human diet, manifests a wide range of moderate to serious health concerns collectively known as micronutrient malnutrition. It affects half of the global population, and food-based strategies such as balanced diet, supplementation and food fortification are effective. The balanced diet and dietary supplementation are desirable and sustainable; however, their efficacy is uncertain due to the required demands to improve dietary habits. Interestingly, food fortification – addition of micronutrients to processed foods - supplies micronutrients without the need to alter eating habits and unquestionably stands out as a systematic approach to moderate the statistical rise in micronutrient malnutrition. On the other hand, biofortification - plant breeding and/or genetic engineering - is a convenient and sustainable strategy with myriad possibilities to augment micronutrients status that could endure through generations. These approaches coupled with meticulously organized innovative policies and a competent food value chain will indeed aid in addressing the micronutrient deficiency toward building a productive and efficient generation.