With increasing interest in the potential effects of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids in early life, there is a need for data on the dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in low-income countries. This review compiles information on the content in breast milk and in foods that are important in the diets of low-income countries from the few studies available. We also estimate the availability of fat and fatty acids in 13 low-income and middleincome countries based on national food balance sheets from the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization Statistical Database (FOASTAT). Breast milk docosahexaenoic acid content is very low in populations living mainly on a plant-based diet, but higher in fish-eating countries. Per capita supply of fat and n-3 fatty acids increases markedly with increasing gross domestic product (GDP). In most of the 13 countries, 70-80% of the supply of PUFA comes from cereals and vegetable oils, some of which have very low a-linolenic acid (ALA) content.The total n-3 fatty acid supply is below or close to the lower end of the recommended intake range [0.4%E (percentage of energy supply)] for infants and young children, and below the minimum recommended level (0.5%E) for pregnant and lactating women in the nine countries with the lowest GDP. Fish is important as a source of long-chain n-3 fatty acids, but intake is low in many countries. The supply of n-3 fatty acids can be increased by using vegetable oils with higher ALA content (e.g. soybean or rapeseed oil) and by increasing fish production (e.g. through fish farming).
The impact of freshwater fish consumption on the status of long-chain n-3 fatty acids (n-3 LCPUFA) in infants in landlocked, low-income populations is unknown. We used secondary data from a randomized, single-blinded, controlled trial to evaluate the impact of daily consumption of complementary food products with small amounts of freshwater fish on whole blood n-3 LCPUFA in Cambodian infants. Infants (n = 419), received daily, one of four food products for 9 months. Two products contained freshwater fish: WinFood (10% fish by dry weight) and WinFood-L (12% fish by dry weight), while two products were non-fish-based: corn-soy blends (CSB+ and CSB++). Whole blood fatty acids and breastfeeding status were assessed at baseline and endline of the intervention. The WinFood products contributed to an estimated maximum intake of 86.5 mg/day n-3 LCPUFA. There was no difference in whole blood n-3 LCPUFA among the four intervention groups or between the fish-based and the non-fish-based groups (p ≥ 0.142). At endline, 71% of the children were still breastfed. Interaction analyses indicated a lower ratio of n-6/n-3 PUFA in non-breastfed infants in the WinFood groups compared to the CSB groups (p= 0.026). Thus, a high intake of n-3 LCPUFA from breastmilk may have blurred a potential impact of small amounts of freshwater fish effect on n-3 LCPUFA status in Cambodian infants.
Natural tropical forests cover 89% of the land area of West Papua Province, Indonesia. Forests have traditionally been an important part of local food systems for Indigenous Papuans. Despite the contribution of forests to food security, West Papua has been ranked as one of the most food-insecure provinces in Indonesia, with high rates of both under-and-overnutrition. This paper aims to discuss the dietary transition taking place in West Papua and uses local perspectives to explore the link between changes in diets, food security, and forests. We used mixed methods with a triangulation design to corroborate the quantitative data that we present from two rounds of the National Socioeconomic Survey (SUSENAS) on food consumption for West Papua from 2008 and 2017, with information from four focus group discussions with institutional and local stakeholders. The quantitative analysis showed that West Papua is experiencing a dietary transition, moving away from the consumption of traditional foods, such as sago, tubers, wild meat, and fresh legumes, toward diets with more rice, chicken, tofu, and tempeh. The consumption of processed and ultra-processed food (UPF) has increased while the consumption of fresh food has decreased. The qualitative analysis confirmed these findings. The institutional stakeholders expressed a desire for Papuans to return to eating traditional diets for better food security, whereas the local stakeholders worried about their children's high consumption of UPFs. We also found a disconnect between how food security is measured by the national Food Security Index (FSI) and the point of view of the institutional stakeholders. While the FSI indicators are more infrastructure-related measures, the institutional stakeholders link food security with the availability, accessibility, stability, and sustainability of the food sources in their surrounding environment, especially the forests. The institutional stakeholders support the commitment of the provincial government to maintain at least 70% of the forest cover in West Papua, as stated in the Manokwari Declaration although they expressed the need for more clarity on how this will impact their food security. The Indonesian government and the international community should support this initiative and carry it out with substantial input from local Papuan stakeholders.
mundo, Latinoamérica y especialmente a nuestro país. También se analizan la propuesta de cambios y esquemas para mejorar la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición por las Naciones Unidas. En esta parte, se muestra los trabajos y avances producto del esfuerzo del Estado Peruano por dar una orientación y criterios de solución a la problemática generada en estos asuntos. Finalmente, se analiza cómo la ética se hace presente en la problemática de la seguridad alimentaria y la nutrición desde el enfoque de diversos actores, y qué acciones y posturas basadas en la ética deben ser las más idóneas en una realidad relacionada a estos temas que no deja de ser muy compleja.
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