José Ma Bengoa’s scientific contributions

Malnutrition is a complex topic that requires collaboration between the biological and human sciences. If we accept the yardsticks provided by modern nutritional science, biologists have at their disposal techniques that rapidly provide objective measurements to assess the state of nutrition among the various categories of individuals in a given population. While it is possible to determine who is suffering from malnutrition, identifying the factors responsible for it is another matter. The human being is an omnivorous consumer, whose feeding behavior is largely conditioned by his culture. Both material and non-material aspects of culture should be taken into account in order to understand the causes of malnutrition, but which ones? Obviously, those directly related to the diet, such as food production, are important, but other factors, like religious beliefs, can also have an impact. The weight of the factors involved may vary according to the society considered. This is why the holistic approach of the anthropologist, sifting through the various domains of culture, may most readily reveal the hierarchy of causes. Which aspects should be analyzed? In the field of material culture, the following factors should be considered: food production and preservation; storage; commercialization; food technology; cooking; consumption of foods and liquids; and family budgets, with special reference to food. In non-material culture, consideration should be given to the following aspects: knowledge about local animals and plants; social and religious organization in relation to food production and consumption; social and religious rituals involving food; prestige in relation to food (food as a link between individuals, between social groups/communities, and to the afterlife; food as a marker; food and body shape); knowledge in relation to nutrition and health; and opinions and attitudes (preferences and rejections) in relation to food. The psychosocial aspects related to food may also be examined, e.g., the …