Nourishing the Nation

The Indian Express     9th January 2021     Save    

Context:  National Family Health Survey (NFHS) -5 had signalled about deteriorating nutrition. Improving the diet of low-income households is the only way to address chronic malnutrition.

Reasons for chronic and sustained malnutrition:

  • Low budgetary support
  • Deficits causing malnutrition:
    1. Large dietary deficit: (protein-calorie-micronutrient deficit) among at least 40 % of our population of all age groups.- NFHS 4, 2015.
    2. Information deficit: at the household level especially among lower-income families, leading to lack of any popular demand to address malnutrition
    3. Inequitable market conditions: that denies affordable and energy-fortified food to children, adolescents and adults in lower-income families.
      • There is a direct correlation between the high incidence of underweight, stunting and wasting among children, and the lack of low-cost fortified energy food in the market.

Way Forward: to improve the nutritional indicators of our population/addressing malnutrition

  • Higher budgetary allocations: for healthcare, Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and monitoring systems.
  • Examine the current nutrition-related programmes: Go for additional interventions in chronically malnourished pockets: e.g. by using
  • Create a plan: to address adolescent malnutrition.
    • Update National Nutrition Policy of 1993: By prioritizing interventions in accordance with the latest surveys and research findings.
  • Address 3. Deficits:
    1. Acknowledge and prioritize to address a dietary deficit in the public health/public policy agendas.
    2. Create a national IEC (information, education and communication) programme that reaches targeted households to bring behavioural change regarding importance of balanced diets.
    3. Provide nutritive fortified energy food:  for children within Rs 5 from wheat, defatted soya, green gram, and ragi malt.
      • Encourage private entrepreneur to participate in this mission as there is a market demand of 42 million tonnes of low-cost energy food per year.