Fortified Food Reaching 90 Million People in Rajasthan and MP
Editor's Synopsis:
India is the 15th hungriest nation out of 81 developing and transition countries that were ranked
Almost 50% of preschool children are underweight and stunted
Nearly 70% of women, children and adolescent girls suffer iron deficiency anaemia
Vitamin A is a public health problem and vitamin D deficiency is emerging as a public health problem in a big way as it is impacting the health of all population groups
Jaipur, 4th May, 2015:[/b] Today a symposium on "Food Fortification in Rajasthan: Enriching Foods, Enriching Lives" organised in Jaipur, Rajasthan by Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in collaboration with Indian Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR). The objective of the symposium was to highlight the lessons learnt during the last five years of extensive work done for scaling up healthof the country's peopleand fight against the issues of malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency prevailing among the large sections of population.
In India, almost 70% of women, girl children and adolescent girls suffer from iron deficiency anaemia. Deficiencies of other micronutrients like vitamin A, riboflavin, folic acid and iodine are rampant. More recent studies suggest deficiencies of zinc, vitamin B12 and vitamin D as well. Maternal malnutrition is the major cause of Low Birth Weight (LBW). Almost a third of babies in India are born with LBW (