Almost half of the adolescents were stunted and most of them were thin. Problem of overweight was seen in less than 0.5% of adolescents. Factors typical to underdeveloped society seems to contribute to the moderate to high prevalence of undernutrition among adolescents working in tea gardens.

Peculiar food habits in Mizoram might be associated with the high prevalence of stomach cancer in Mizoram along with other factors. H. pylori infection might increase the risk of stomach cancer, or it may play a role as a promoter of stomach cancer in Mizoram.

The incidence of stomach cancer in India is lower than that of any other country around the world. However, in Mizoram, one of the north-eastern state of India, a very high age-adjusted incidence of stomach cancer is recorded. A hospital-based case-control study was carried out to identify the influence of tobacco use on the risk of developing stomach cancer in Mizoram. Among the cases, the risk of stomach cancer was significantly elevated among current smokers [odds ratio (OR), 2.3; 95% confidence interval (95% CI), 1.4-8.4] but not among ex-smokers. Higher risks were seen for meiziol (a local cigarette) smokers (OR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.3-9.3). The increased risk was apparent among subjects who had smoked for z30 years.

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An epidemiological study on alcohol and tobacco (smoking and nonsmoked tobacco) use was carried out in tea garden population of Assam, one of the largest agroindustries of India. A total sample of 2,264 individuals (male, 1,033; female, 1,231) aged 15 years and older was interviewed in 2002-2003 to collect information about alcohol and tobacco use using a predesigned and pretested questionnaire. Age-adjusted prevalence of alcohol consumption was 59.2% (male, 69.3%; female, 54%). Smoking was more common among males (13.2%) than females (2%). However, use of nonsmoked tobacco was almost as popular among female (71.9%) as among males (75.3%). More than half of the respondents (54.7%) were multiple users of alcohol and tobacco. Prevalence of alcohol consumption, nonsmoked tobacco use, and smoking among the young age group (15-24 years) was 32.2%, 52.5%, and 2.2%, respectively. Prevalence of smoking increased with age, and more than a quarter of males above 54 years were smokers. Similar age trends in the prevalence of alcohol and nonsmoked tobacco was not observed. Sociodemographic correlates, like education, occupation, and marital status, emerged as important predictors of substance uses irrespective of sex. Association of income with substance use was weak in this study, perhaps due to homogeneity of income level. Users of alcohol and tobacco were mostly illiterate, manual workers, and widows/widowers. However, smokers were more common among sedentary worker. Not withstanding the limitations of the study, the findings of the study are useful for planning interventional strategy to control alcohol and tobacco use for better health outcome.

A cross sectional study on hypertension was done on 294 subjects aged 30 years and above. 150 households were selected randomly representing 50 households from each locality inhabited exclusively by the rural Mizos, indigenous rural Assamese and the tea-garden workers respectively, in the northeastern region of India. Blood pressure was measured by sphygmo-manometer in sitting posture. Anthro-pometric measurements were taken using standard procedure for measuring height, weight, waist and hip girth. Information on age, sex, ethnicity, literacy, alcohol intake, smoking pattern, physical activity, occupation, amount of salt consumption was collected using a standard and pre-tested questionnaire. Significant differences were observed in both the systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels among the three different ethnic groups selected for this study (p < 0.0001). Multiple regression analyses indicated that in Mizos, age, waist circumference and alcohol intake were independently associated with increase in systolic blood pressure whereas smoking was found to be negatively associated with systolic blood pressure (R2 = 0.391, p < 0.001). Factors, which were the best predictors of diastolic blood pressure, were age and body mass index [(kg/m2) (R2 = 0.227, p < 0.001)]. In the rural Assamese population, the best predictors of systolic blood pressure were age and waist circumference (R2 = 0.263, p = 0.018). For the diastolic blood pressure, age, alcohol intake and body mass index were important correlates (R2 = 0.131, p < 0.001). In the tea garden community, important predictors of systolic blood pressure were age, gender and marital status (R2 = 0.187, p < 0.001). On the other hand, age and alcohol intake were best predictors for diastolic blood pressure (R2 = 0.09, p < 0.001).

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