Studies on the Nutritional Status of Rural Population in Desert Area of Rajasthan

The study was undertaken to assess nutritional status and dietary habits of the rural population in desert area and aimed at doing comparisons with other state’s data so as to assess the percentage of variation among the states. It has been carried out in 28 villages belonging to 6 tehsils of Jodhpur district in 2005-06. Five clusters of four households in which one cluster selected from SC/ST area and remaining 4 clusters from non-SC/ST areas of each village were selected by using systematic random sampling procedure. Total covering of 560 households were selected and 3301 individuals were examined for a nthropometry, dietary intake and nutritional deficiency signs. Under-nutrition in preschoolers observed to be very high (81 %), more in semi pucca houses and in nuclear families (Gomez classification). Scheduled caste and Scheduled tribe communities (88 and 85.7 %) suffered more from under nutrition than other communities (74.7 %). Chronic Energy Deficiency in adults was observed 55.5 %. Scheduled caste adults (68.8 %) suffered more from chronic energy deficiency than Scheduled tribes (50 %). Severe chronic energy deficiency observed higher in Scheduled caste and Scheduled tribe community (23.7 and 18.4 %) than backward castes (11.5 %). Protein Calorie Malnutrition was higher in females (7.2 %) than males (5.3 %). Consumption of green leafy vegetables in their diet was observed to be grossly deficient (4.1 %) whereas fats and oils consumption was nearly half of the recommended dietary allowances (ICMR). The comparison of present study results with NNMB and NFHS II showed higher prevalence of under nutrition and chronic energy deficiency which may be due to the harsh environmental conditions in desert areas and paucity in the consumption of daily food intake leading to protein calorie malnutrition. The results would provide information and useful guidelines not only for food policies but also to assess the impact of the nutritional programs currently in progress and for future planning in the state of Rajasthan.