Dietary adequacy and nutritional status of Meitei community of Manipur, Northeast India

Abstract

Meitei is the main ethnic community that belongs to the north‐eastern state of Manipur in India. This community is bestowed with rich biodiverse resources with indigenous foods still form an integral part of their diet. However, limited data on the food and nutrient consumption as well as nutritional status of this community are available. This study was carried out on the children, adolescents and women of reproductive age (WRA) of this community from 12 villages, to determine their food consumption pattern and nutritional status. Basic anthropometry and 24‐h dietary intake assessment was conducted. The prevalence of underweight was 27%, stunting was 45% and wasting was 12% in children below 5 years. Stunting was observed among 34% of children 5–17 years of age. About 7% of WRA were undernourished, while 28% were overweight or obese. About 55% of 1–7 year‐old children had mean probability adequacy of 12 micronutrients <0.5, and the adequacy of individual micronutrients namely vitamin A, E and calcium were low. Dietary determinants such as low dietary diversity score, dietary species richness and the lowest tertiles of different food groups' intake (except for sugars, fish and sea foods and spices and condiments) predicted micronutrient inadequacy. In addition to a high prevalence of undernutrition in children and adolescents and overnutrition in WRA, the effect of various dietary determinants on micronutrient adequacy in the study group of the Meitei community are reported.

A review of the dietary diversity and micronutrient adequacy among the women of reproductive age in low‐ and middle‐income countries

“…The intake of calcium was excessively lower among women of Zambia (146 mg) (Kaliwile et al., 2019 ), and South Africa (150.5 mg) (Oldewage‐Theron & Kruger, 2011 ), Ethiopia (302.6 mg) (Asayehu et al., 2017 ), and Bangladesh (161.56–323.6 mg) (Akter et al., 2021 ; Arsenault et al., 2013 ; Islam et al., 2021 ; Sultana et al., 2019 ). Only a study in India (905 mg) (Loukrakpam et al., 2020 ) showed adequate intake of calcium among the women.…”

“…The intake of daily dietary iron by the women in LMICs (3.8–36.0 mg) was above the daily EAR of 15 mg. The studies in Ethiopia (36.0 mg) (Asayehu et al., 2017 ), Vietnam (15.5 mg) (Nguyen et al., 2014 ), Congo (18.8–20.3 mg) (Moumin et al., 2020 ), Nigeria (16.8 mg) (De Moura et al., 2015 ), and India (22.3 mg) (Loukrakpam et al., 2020 ) indicated that dietary iron intake was satisfactory compared to the EAR. On the other hand, studies in Lebanon (8.0 mg) (Abou‐Rizk et al., 2021 ), India (7.39 mg) (Nunn et al., 2019 ), Zambia (7.39 mg) (Kaliwile et al., 2019 ), and South Africa (3.8 mg) (Oldewage‐Theron & Kruger, 2011 ), and Bangladesh (6.72–11.63 mg) (Akter et al., 2021 ; Arsenault et al., 2013 ; M. H. Islam et al., 2021 ; Sultana et al., 2019 ) showed lower intake of iron than the recommended EAR.…”

Coverage of antenatal iron-folic acid and calcium distribution during pregnancy and their contextual determinants in the northeastern region of India

“…Reliable estimates from NER on the burden of folate deficiency during pregnancy are currently unavailable. However, surveys among WRA from different communities in NER have documented low intakes of dietary folate ( 41 , 42 ). Interestingly, the recent Comprehensive National Nutritional Survey found preponderance of folate deficiency among adolescents from NER ( 43 ).…”

Longitudinal trends in the health outcomes among children of the North Eastern States of India: a comparative analysis using national DHS data from 2006 to 2020

“…We note a higher burden of stunting in rural Meghalaya and Sikkim, and severe/wasting in rural Tripura and urban Nagaland. Manipur had one of the lowest prevalence of malnutrition indicators in NE states and this could be attributed to the better socioeconomic status of the population [ 30 ]. Conversely, high stunting in Meghalaya—primarily driven by Khasi Hill tribes—can be linked with high food insecurity, low income, and over-reliance on commercial agricultural products and food provided through Public Distribution System [ 15 , 31 ].…”

“…We suggest equipping community healthworkers in identifying and counselling overnutrition cases in addition to undernutrition. Past literature, including a study on the Meitei tribe of Manipur, have found associations of childhood overweight with consumption of energy-dense or sugary food, sedentary lifestyle [ 40 ], lack of dietary diversity, maternal overweight, smoking, no breastfeeding and rapid urbanisation [ 30 , 41 ].…”