D J Nithya

M S Swamininathan Research Foundation | MSSRF · Agriculture Nutrition and Health

Background An ongoing action research nutrition literacy programme based on Freire’s approach of raising critical consciousness through the use of dialogue as a pedagogic tool is being implemented as part of a nutrition sensitive agricultural intervention in tribal Odisha. One hundred and eight adults, referred to as Community Hunger Fighters (CHFs...

Food based approach can prove effective in improving access and availability of nutrients from foods required for daily life where most of the people depend on agriculture for their livelihood. A study on feasibility of Farming Systems for Nutrition (FSN) approach was undertaken from 2013 to 2018 in a few villages of Koraput district, Odisha state...

Farming is the main livelihood of a majority of people in India. The country is also home to a large population of undernourished people. This indicates potential for mainstreaming the nutrition dimension in the farming system to impact on nutrition outcomes. A Farming System for Nutrition (FSN) study was conducted in two agro-ecologically differen...

This report is a documentation of endline survey results of the Farming System for Nutrition (FSN) study under LANSA in Wardha, Maharashtra and Koraput, Odisha in 2017-18.

In nutrition insecure regions of rural India, farming system with focus on nutrition (or FSN) can prove effective in improving access and availability for nutrient intake. In 2017, a few villages in Koraput district, Odisha and Wardha district, Maharashtra were involved to increase their crop diversity, intercropping of pulses and cereals, promotio...

Background: Farming system for Nutrition (FSN) is an intervention study conducted in two agro-ecologically different locations under the research programme on “Leveraging Agriculture for Nutrition in South Asia” in India. This paper examines whether nutrition garden intervention along with nutritional awareness addresses household micro-nutrient in...

There is a lot of ongoing work and studies on addressing malnutrition through food based approaches and particularly through nutrition-sensitive agriculture interventions. Review of earlier studies show that nutrition-sensitive agriculture has the potential to promote nutritional outcome. The present paper is based on an ongoing farming system for...

Background and objectives: Dietary diversity plays a critical role in infants as they need energy and nutrient dense foods for both physical and mental development. This study examines whether three dietary diversity indices validate against Nutrient Adequacy Ratio (NAR) and Mean Adequacy Ratio (MAR) and studies the relationship of dietary diversi...

Dietary diversity is associated with household or individual food availability and intake of nutrients from different food groups and is an important component of nutritional outcome. This study examined the Nutrient Adequacy Ratio (NAR) and the Mean Adequacy Ratio (MAR) of three dietary diversity indices and their relationship with the nutritional...

Agriculture is the predominant livelihood for 70 % of the population living in rural India, and food expenses occupy a major proportion of their household budget. Rural household diets suggest that agricultural growth has contributed to increasing calorie intake with very minimal effect on the intake of protein and micronutrients. This in turn caus...

Climatic-environmental conditions have an enormous influence on agricultural cycle on which the economy of rural households in developing countries depends. These populations suffer from seasonal energy stress because of fluctuations in their access to food, or increased energy expenditure needed for peak agricultural work. Seasonality is recognise...

Dietary Diversity, with foods from all food groups is necessary to meet the requirements for essential nutrients which lead to good health. This study examines whether different dietary diversity indices have relationship with the nutritional status of school children aged 6 to 12 years, in two different regions of India: Wardha district, Maharasht...

Background: Anaemia and vitamin A deficiency (VAD) are major micronutrient deficiencies that affect 30% of the world’s population and 250 million preschool children respectively. Methodology: This study examines whether dietary diversity score (DDS) ensures micronutrient adequacy and its relationship with blood haemoglobin levels and serum retinol...

The World Bank lists India as one of the countries with high level of malnourished children. Malnutrition among children below 5 years continues to be one of India’s major human development challenges. An understanding of the dimensions of the problem is necessary for undertaking appropriate intervention programs in a community. Wardha district in...

Iron deficiency anemia is the most prevalent form of micronutrient deficiency in India. According to NFHS-3 (2005-06) report, adolescence in India goes hand in hand with iron-deficiency anemia and now even boys too are falling prey to the disease. It has also reported a disturbing presence of anemia in pregnant and lactating women. A Farming System...

Extrusion-cooking is advantageous for vulnerable foods and offers a chance to use raw materials which have not previously displayed great economic importance or have even been regarded as waste. Rice and pulse milling by-products due to the low price and easy conversion to processed products result in increasing demand for conversion of these by-pr...

All the households in 8 villages (822 households) of Wardha, Maharashtra and 11 villages (921 households) in Koraput, Odisha were purposively selected for the study. Dietary Diversity Index (Berry's Index) Data on frequency of food consumed was collected from all households for a reference period of one month during three time periods of the year....

The majority of the population in South Asia are undernourished and depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. Levels of stunting and wasting are unacceptably high, leading to a loss in productivity and GDP and an increased burden of death and disease. A study Farming Systems for Nutrition (FSN) under LANSA in progress in two agro-ecologically di...

Study on the phase transition characteristics is an important parameter in extrusion processing. The influence of Moisture Content (MC), particle size and level of cereal-pulse blend on the glass transition (Tg) and melt (Tm) temperatures of a ready to eat cereal-pulse formulation was determined. All samples were moisture conditioned in a 9 to 27 %...

The World Bank lists India as one of the countries with high level of malnourished children. Malnutrition among children below 5 years continues to be one of India’s major human development challenges. An understanding of the dimensions of the problem is necessary for undertaking appropriate intervention programs in a community. Wardha district in...

Nutrients all around us, but goes unnoticed…… May 23, 2014 by nithyadj Why are we so unaware of nutrition growing in our own backyard? Drumstick Tree Last week, my colleagues in Chennai were longing to eat the healthy and nutritious Drumstick leaves (prepared like greens), and this reminded me of an incident. During one of the visits to Saheli, a...

Rice bran is a concentrated source of phytochemicals such as oryzanols, tocopherols and tocotrienols which have high antioxidant properties. The study was carried out to incorporate rice bran (5%-30%) at different levels in rice pasta. The antioxidant of pasta developed by incorporating rice bran was studied by DPPH assay and reducing power as per...

Millets are high-energy, nutritious food and are mostly used by people belonging to the lower income group in India. Millets are mainly consumed as porridge throughout the world and in order to diversify their usage, this study was carried out. Foxtail millet was popped after selection of suitable pretreatment and their characteristics are studied...

The respiration rate of fruits and vegetables is an important indicator of senescence and ethylene production in fruits. Storage temperatures play a major role in the respiration rates of fruits and vegetables. Experiments were conducted to establish the influence of storage temperatures, O 2 concentrations and variety on the respiration of mangoes...

Removal of water from fruits can extend storage life. Among the preservation techniques, osmotic dehydration offers a simple, inexpensive and excellent alternative to traditional methods.