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Dietary food intake patterns among women in rural South Haiti
Author(s) -
DESSALINES MICHAEL,
Finnigan Mousson,
HromiFiedler Amber,
Pachon Helena,
PerezEscamilla Rafael
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.876.1
Subject(s) - micronutrient , orange (colour) , dried fish , fish <actinopterygii> , biology , food science , toxicology , medicine , pathology , fishery
We applied a Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) to 153 mothers of children under five in rural South Haiti from June to late July 2007. The FFQ contained 46 items and used a 3 month reference time period. Over the previous 3 months, the majority of women reported consuming fruits (98.7%), rice (98.7%), plantains (94%), pumpkin (78.4%), corn (95.4%), mangoes (96.7%), papaya (78.9%), watermelon (52.3%), sweet potatoes (92.8%), chicken (81.0%), beef (80.4%), local bread (96.7%), salty snacks (85.0%), fish (85.0%), carrots (93.5%), raw milk (83.0%), kola (60.8%), concentrated milk (60.8%), and liver (53.6%). However, the median consumption for most nutrient dense foods was less than 2 times per week. Only corn, plantain, milk, rice, local bread and mangoes were consumed 3 or more times per week. Foods that were infrequently consumed (i.e. median less or equal 2 times a week) were: watermelon, sweet potatoes, papaya, pumpkin, carrots, liver, chicken, beef, fish, salty snacks, concentrated milk and kola. The above results suggest a need for micronutrient enhanced foods in the area to alleviate potential micronutrient deficiencies. We are currently exploring the potential contributions that orange fleshed sweet potatoes can make towards this goal. Funding provided by CIDA through the Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT).