Food guide for diabetics

In the absence of government guidelines on nutrition for people suffering from different diseases, the non-profit, Diabetes Foundation of India, has prepared food guidelines suited for diabetics in collaboration with the department of science and technology. It has recommended that diabetic people should reduce the carbohydrate component of their diet from 70 per cent to 50-60 per cent and increase their protein intake. The guidelines will be published in a peer reviewed medical journal soon, the non-profit said.

Wild and spicy

Masala paan growing in forests is a delicacy in Vidarbha In tribal pockets of central India people are still intimate with foreststhey know the fruits and vines they can pluck and cook. Even where vegetables are cultivated and market supplies organized, tribals and non-tribals alike savour wild vegetables as delicacies.

Me likes what me likes

Anaemic people might not get what they need from folic acid supplements

Business bites

There has been an animated debate in the past three years over the supply of food in the ICDS (Integrated Child Development Services) programme. Supplementary nutrition has been provided to all children under the age of six since the inception of the programme more than three decades ago. This was done with the recognition that the nutrition gap (between what children should be consuming every day and what they actually have) is more than 500 calories. This is one of the reasons for the

Exclusive cereal-dependence

The ICDS programme launched in the 1970s was based on the results of extensive surveys which identified rampant child under-nutrition in India. Using the weight-for-age and height-for-age criteria, only 10 per cent children under five could be classified normal. And 15-20 per cent were underweight even when they were short. The situation has not improved in the past 35 years despite juggling with classification. With a 500-600 calories (cal) deficit in energy intake, it is not

Fight over non-existent biscuits

Civil society and the media are unfairly blaming a government nutrition programme I have been a political journalist for over three decades. Only recently have I become familiar with the nitty gritty of development reporting. The manner in which malnutrition is covered by a section of the media has come as an eye opener. It appears those who report on the subject generally confine themselves to presenting opinions of people with a similar viewpoint.

Foetal lesson

Mother's low-protein diet makes child vulnerable unbalanced diet during pregnancy affects the health of the developing foetus. But it can be more serious. A recent research suggests low protein intake by a pregnant woman can damage foetal cells. So much so that it can lead to diseases like diabetes later.

Tough nut to crack

South Asia

Dubious vitamin drive: A committee investigating reports of deaths and illnesses following a nationwide campaign promoting vitamin A and de-worming medicines in Bangladesh said the tablets were safe. The government had launched the investigation after two children died and 400 fell sick soon after consuming the tablets. Some 20 million children received Vitamin A capsules and 19 million were given de-worming tablets in early June. The Dhaka offices of the World Health Organization and Unicef, which supported

The lonely eater

Meal times are on their way out "YOU are what you eat." In no time in history does this aphorism hold more grain than now. At times, ours seems to be a nutrition-obsessed civilization. In supermarkets, especially in middle-class neighbourhoods, buying food has become like conducting a scientific experiment. Individuals spend hours looking at food packet labels counting carbohydrates, proteins and vitamins and gauging if the food is organic, natural or holistic. A weekend newspaper supplement is incomplete without a section on health and nutrition.