Assessment of Nutritional Status: Tribal Issues and Opinions

Nutritional issues which have drawn attention from research and teaching point of view. In course of investigation authors have adopted both subjective and objective approaches to understand the concept of health and nutrition. Neither health nor nutrition can be understood in isolation from the socio-economic background of the tribal community and macro-micro level socio-political undercurrents. In this context authors have also underlined the importance of culture, including indigenous knowledge, in the management issues relating to health and nutrition. And the role of culture and tradition have been intensively examined while discussing nutritional status of Dhurwa tribe in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh. The ability to accurately assess nutritional status of tribal has become critically important in recent decades, as knowledge of and interest in the relationships between diet and health have increased. Nutritional researchers must be able to measure food and nutrient intake with accuracy and precision before drawing conclusions about how health and risk for disease are influenced by what tribal people eat. Periodic monitoring of the nation's health and nutritional status is necessary to develop effective programs targeting specific health and nutrition concerns. Awareness of these health and nutrition concerns has led the government to establish such programs as the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women....