Contribution of forest foods to dietary intake and their association with household food insecurity: a cross-sectional study in women from rural Cameroon

Fungo, Robert; Muyonga, John H.; Kabahenda, Margaret; Kaaya, Archileo N.; Okia, Clement Akais; Donn, Pauline; Tchatat, M.; Tchingsabe, O.; Tiegehungo, Julius C; Loo, Judy; Snook, L.K.

doi:10.1017/s1368980016001324

Cited by 42 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(76 reference statements)

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“…While a low diversity of wild plants was also observed in the diet of other hunter-gatherers in the Congo Basin (de Garine 1996b;Ichikawa 1996;Termote et al 2012), the decrease of these wild plants in the environment is a concern for both local biodiversity and livelihood. Reducing amounts of wild plants in Baka daily meals will have an impact on their food security, given the recognized importance of wild species for the diversity of micronutrients they provide (Erskine et al 2014;Fungo et al 2016). Moreover, this is accompanied by a potential loss of local knowledge.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Bush Mangoes to Bouillon Cubes: Wild Plants and Diet among the Baka, Forager-Horticulturalists from Southeast Cameroon

et al. 2020

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Increasing deforestation affects tropical forests, threatening the livelihoods of local populations who subsist on forest resources. The disappearance of wild plants and animals and the increasing influence of market economies affect local health, well-being, and diet. The impact of these changes on wild meat consumption has been well documented, but little attention has been given to wild edible plants, despite their importance as sources of calories and micronutrients. Furthermore, the relationships among food behavior strategies adopted by local populations, their psycho-cultural representations of food, and their food preferences have been poorly explored. In this study, we investigate food behaviors with an emphasis on the role of wild edible plants among a forager-horticulturalist society from the Congo Basin: the Baka. By combining an ethnobotanical survey with data from interviews (n = 536) related to food behaviors and representations of food, our data show that the Baka valorize both agricultural and marketable foods, and that wild plants represent a minor part of their diet, both in frequency and diversity. Finally, by examining how some wild edible plants have shifted from being eaten to being sold, we explore how market-oriented uses of wild edible plants may affect dietary behaviors and biocultural resilience.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Bush Mangoes to Bouillon Cubes: Wild Plants and Diet among the Baka, Forager-Horticulturalists from Southeast Cameroon

et al. 2020

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“…For the top forest dependent communities across these countries, forest food products provide nearly 15% of the recommended quantities of fruits and vegetables, and 106% for meat and fish (Rowland et al, 2017). Fungo et al (2016) report that forest foods contribute 93% of daily vitamin A intake of women in rural forest-dependent communities in Cameroon.…”

Section: Underlying Determinants Of Undernutrition Addressed By Forestsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest Conservation: A Potential Nutrition-Sensitive Intervention in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Rasolofoson

Ricketts

Jacob

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Childhood undernutrition yearly kills 3.1 million children worldwide. For those who survive early life undernutrition, it can cause motor and cognitive development problems that translate into poor educational performance and limited work productivity later in life. It has been suggested that nutrition-specific interventions (e.g., micronutrient supplementation) that directly address the immediate determinants of undernutrition (e.g., nutrient intake) need to be complemented by nutrition-sensitive interventions that more broadly address the underlying determinants of undernutrition (e.g., food insecurity). Here, we argue that forest conservation represents a potentially important but overlooked nutrition-sensitive intervention. Forests can address a number of underlying determinants of undernutrition, including the supply of forest food products, income, habitat for pollinators, women's time allocation, diarrheal disease, and dietary diversity. We examine the effects of forests on stunting-a debilitating outcome of undernutrition-using a database of household surveys and environmental variables across 25 low-and middle-income countries. Our result indicates that exposure to forest significantly reduces child stunting (at least 7.11% points average reduction). The average magnitude of the reduction is at least near the median of the impacts of other known nutrition interventions. Forest conservation interventions typically cover large areas and are often implemented where people are vulnerable, and thus could be used to reach a large number of the world's undernourished communities that may have difficult access Rasolofoson et al. Forest Conservation: Potentially Nutrition-Sensitive to traditional nutrition programs. Forest conservation is therefore a potentially effective nutrition-sensitive intervention. Efforts are needed to integrate specific nutrition goals and actions into forest conservation interventions in order to unleash their potential to deliver nutritional benefits.

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“…The findings contrast with the established contribution of wild foods in rural contexts, where wild foods are positively associated with diversifying diets. Fungo et al [65], drawing upon evidence from 11 villages across the eastern-southern Cameroon, found that households who consumed forest foods displayed higher dietary diversity as compared to those who did not, as did Maseko et al [66] amongst children in Malawi. Similarly, Luna-González and Sørensen [67] observed a direct positive relationship between dietary diversity and wild food from six villages in Baja Verapaz, Guatemala.…”

Section: The Contribution Of Wild Foods To Household Dietary Diversitymentioning

confidence: 94%

Foraging Wild Food in Urban Spaces: The Contribution of Wild Foods to Urban Dietary Diversity in South Africa

Garekae

Shackleton

2020

Sustainability

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Globally, approximately one billion people benefit from contributions of wild foods to their food security and dietary diversity. Wild foods are known to be important in rural communities in terms of food and micronutrient provision, diversifying diets, reducing vulnerability to non-communicable diseases and overall health. However, the potential contribution of wild foods towards food security and dietary diversity in urban food systems has been largely overlooked. This study examined the contribution of wild foods to household dietary diversity in two towns in South Africa, based on a survey of 137 households. Household diets were quite diverse, with half (51%) having consumed ≥ 8 food groups, 39% consumed 6 or 7 food groups, and only 10% recorded ≤ 5 food groups in the previous 48 h. Wild foods were prevalent across the sample, with 62% of the households consuming them to some degree. Wild vegetables and fruits were the most common wild foods, consumed by 96 and 79% of the households, respectively. Although wild foods had limited significance on overall dietary diversity, they exhibited substantial contributions within particular food groups. For example, the consumption of vegetables and oil and fats was most prevalent among households consuming wild foods than those who did not. The findings show that wild foods could contribute towards diversifying urban diets at a micro-level, within particular food groups consumed, such as vegetables and fruits. Hence, wild foods are important in ameliorating the monotonous diets of some households and in turn promoting dietary diversity.

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Contribution of forest foods to dietary intake and their association with household food insecurity: a cross-sectional study in women from rural Cameroon

Cited by 42 publications

References 36 publications

From Bush Mangoes to Bouillon Cubes: Wild Plants and Diet among the Baka, Forager-Horticulturalists from Southeast Cameroon

From Bush Mangoes to Bouillon Cubes: Wild Plants and Diet among the Baka, Forager-Horticulturalists from Southeast Cameroon

Forest Conservation: A Potential Nutrition-Sensitive Intervention in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Foraging Wild Food in Urban Spaces: The Contribution of Wild Foods to Urban Dietary Diversity in South Africa

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