VITAMIN A NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF CHENCHU TRIBALS IN KURNOOL AND PRAKASAM DISTRICTS OF ANDHRA PRADESH
Loading...
Files
Date
1999
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University
Abstract
VitaminAdeficiency(VAD)isrecognisedasaseriouspublichealthprobleminlndiaasitcontributestoconsiderableproportion(25%oftheworld’s totalblindliveinIndia)ofblindnessinchildren.AlthoughvitaminAprophylaxis programmehasbeeninoperationforthelast20years,ithasnothadthedesired impact.ThoughvitaminAisbetterbioavailablefromanimalfoods,theyare prohibitorybecauseofeconomicorethricreasons.Sincemorethan80percent oflrzdiandietsisderivedfromprovitaminAcarotenoidspresentinplantfoods, increasingtheproductionandconsumptionofthesefoodsisthemostlogical approachtocombatVAD.ChenchutribalsbelongtoPrimitiveTribal Groupand foundinhabittheforestcladmountainsofEasternGhatsofNallamalaihills.They collectandconsumeavarietyoflessfamiliarGLVswhichmaybegoodsources officarotene.TheirdietsweresaidtocontaininadequatevitaminAandclinical evidenceofvitaminAdeficiencywasalsonotreported.HowevervitaminA nutritionalstatusofthetribalsasassessedbybiochemicalparameterisscanty. Thestudythereforewascarriedouttofindthecarotenecontent oftheforest foodsconsumedbythetribalsandalsothevitaminAnutritionalstatusofthe chenchupopulationofKurnoolandPrakasamdistricts. SrisailamandAtmakurmandalsfromKurnooland PeddadornalamandalfromPrakasamdistrictswereselectedbasedontheconcentrationof chenchutribalpopulations.Twovillagesfromeachmandaladjacenttotheforest were selected. General information pertaining to consumptionpattern, procurement,storageandprocessingmethodsandfoodsbeliefsandattitudesetc., wascollectedfrom20tribalhouseholds(usingpretestedstructuredinterview schedule) fromeachvillageselectedatrandomthuscomprisingof120tribal household.Morbidityofthetribalswasrecordedbyclinicalobservationandalso fromPI-lCrecordsfortheperiodfromjanuary-June1999.TheGLVsavailable
andconsumedbythetribalsatthetimeofsurvey(ApriltoJune)wereanalysed forB—caroteneusingHPLC.ThevitaminAactivityoftheGLVswascalculatedas perthespecificationsofWHO(1982). Foodintakeofthetribalwomenand childrenwasassessedby24hourdietaryrecallmethod.TheB—carotenecontent oftheirdietswascalculatedusingfoodcompositiontablesandalsoactualvalues obtainedfromlaboratoryanalysis.Theserumretinollevelsoftribalchildrenand adultswereassessedusingHPLC.Thefindingsofthestudyareaasfollows. Collectionofminorforestproduceformsthemajorsourceofincomeforthechechus.Theyarealsoengagedinagricultureandagriculturelabourandsome areengagedinforestdepartment.Theycultivatgefewfoodcropslikebajra,maize, ragi,redgram,blackgramandcomericalcropslikechillies,cotton,andgroundnut. Thecropsyieldsweresaidtobepoor.Storageoffoodgrainsforconsumptionis verylimited.Howevertheystoresomefoodsliketamarind,amla,tomatoinpickle form foraperiodfrom6monthsto1year.Theysufferfromcommonailment likegastricdisorders,fever,tuberculosis.Thetribalshavedefiniteattitudesand beliefspertainingtofoodsduringcertainphysiologicalconditions. Thechenchutribalsfollowthreemealpatternaday.Theirdietsweremonotonouswithlessvariety.Theintakeofcereal/milletwasnearlymetbutthe intakeofpulses,rootsandtubers,GLVs,othervegetables,fruits,fatsandoilswas grosslydeficitamongbothtribalwomenandchildren. The[ii—caroteneintakeofboththetribalwomenandpreschoolchildrenwasinadequateascomparedtoRDA. Eightunfamiliar greenleafy vegetables consumed by the tribalscontainedfrom6—23.9mg/lOOgmand2-7.6mg/lOOgmoftotalcarotenoidsand B—carotenerespectively.ThepercentBCinTCofGLVswasfoundtobethe highest35.85percentinperuguthotakura(AmaranthusGangeticus)andtheleast in13.28percentinDevadaadirikura(Erythroxylummonogynum).Thevitamin Aactivity ofthe GLVs studiedrevealed that,highestREwerefound in peddamakulakura(Bauhinapurpura)1905.23/100gmandtheleastinDelakura (ficusreligiosa)566.69ug/lOOg-n. MajorityofthetribalsstudiedhadlowserumvitaminAlevelsandvery few(8.9%)hadnormalserumlevelsofvitaminA. ThestudyindicatedthatsubclinicalvitaminAdeficiencydoexistamong thetribalpopulationstudied.
Description
Keywords
null
Citation
D5893