Cost and affordability of healthy diets across and within countries
Cost and affordability of healthy diets across and within countries

Author: Herforth, A., Bai, Y., Venkat, A., Mahrt, K., Ebel, A. & Masters, W.A.

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2020-12-12

Total Pages: 108

ISBN-13: 925133725X

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Price and affordability are key barriers to accessing sufficient, safe, nutritious food to meet dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. In this study, the least-cost items available in local markets are identified to estimate the cost of three diet types: energy sufficient, nutrient adequate, and healthy (meeting food-based dietary guidelines). For price and availability the World Bank’s International Comparison Program (ICP) dataset is used, which provides food prices in local currency units (LCU) for 680 foods and non-alcoholic beverages in 170 countries in 2017. In addition, country case studies are developed with national food price datasets in United Republic of Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Ghana and Myanmar. The findings reveal that healthy diets by any definition are far more expensive than the entire international poverty line of USD 1.90, let alone the upper bound portion of the poverty line that can credibly be reserved for food of USD 1.20. The cost of healthy diets exceeds food expenditures in most countries in the Global South. The findings suggest that nutrition education and behaviour change alone will not substantially improve dietary consumption where nutrient adequate and healthy diets, even in their cheapest form, are unaffordable for the majority of the poor. To make healthy diets cheaper, agricultural policies, research, and development need to shift toward a diversity of nutritious foods.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020

Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2020-07-01

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 925132901X

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Updates for many countries have made it possible to estimate hunger in the world with greater accuracy this year. In particular, newly accessible data enabled the revision of the entire series of undernourishment estimates for China back to 2000, resulting in a substantial downward shift of the series of the number of undernourished in the world. Nevertheless, the revision confirms the trend reported in past editions: the number of people affected by hunger globally has been slowly on the rise since 2014. The report also shows that the burden of malnutrition in all its forms continues to be a challenge. There has been some progress for child stunting, low birthweight and exclusive breastfeeding, but at a pace that is still too slow. Childhood overweight is not improving and adult obesity is on the rise in all regions. The report complements the usual assessment of food security and nutrition with projections of what the world may look like in 2030, if trends of the last decade continue. Projections show that the world is not on track to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030 and, despite some progress, most indicators are also not on track to meet global nutrition targets. The food security and nutritional status of the most vulnerable population groups is likely to deteriorate further due to the health and socio economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report puts a spotlight on diet quality as a critical link between food security and nutrition. Meeting SDG 2 targets will only be possible if people have enough food to eat and if what they are eating is nutritious and affordable. The report also introduces new analysis of the cost and affordability of healthy diets around the world, by region and in different development contexts. It presents valuations of the health and climate-change costs associated with current food consumption patterns, as well as the potential cost savings if food consumption patterns were to shift towards healthy diets that include sustainability considerations. The report then concludes with a discussion of the policies and strategies to transform food systems to ensure affordable healthy diets, as part of the required efforts to end both hunger and all forms of malnutrition.

Sustainable healthy diets
Sustainable healthy diets

Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2019-10-15

Total Pages: 42

ISBN-13: 9251318751

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Considering the detrimental environmental impact of current food systems, and the concerns raised about their sustainability, there is an urgent need to promote diets that are healthy and have low environmental impacts. These diets also need to be socio-culturally acceptable and economically accessible for all. Acknowledging the existence of diverging views on the concepts of sustainable diets and healthy diets, countries have requested guidance from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) on what constitutes sustainable healthy diets. These guiding principles take a holistic approach to diets; they consider international nutrition recommendations; the environmental cost of food production and consumption; and the adaptability to local social, cultural and economic contexts. This publication aims to support the efforts of countries as they work to transform food systems to deliver on sustainable healthy diets, contributing to the achievement of the SDGs at country level, especially Goals 1 (No Poverty), 2 (Zero Hunger), 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), 4 (Quality Education), 5 (Gender Equality) and 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and 13 (Climate Action).

Affordability of nutritious diets in rural India
Affordability of nutritious diets in rural India

Author: Raghunathan, Kalyani

Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst

Published: 2020-03-11

Total Pages: 54

ISBN-13:

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Malnutrition is endemic in India. In 2015-16 some 38% of preschool children were stunted and 21% were wasted, while more than half of Indian mothers and children were anemic. There are many posited explanations for the high rates of malnutrition in India, but surprisingly few discuss the role of Indian diets, particularly the affordability of nutritious diets given low wages and the significant structural problems facing India’s agricultural sector. This study was undertaken to address knowledge gaps around the affordability of nutritious diets in rural India. To do so we used nationally representative rural price and wage data to estimate the least cost means of satisfying India-specific dietary recommendations, referred to as the Cost of a Recommended Diet (CoRD), and assess the affordability of this diet relative to male and female wages for unskilled laborers. Although we find that dietary costs increased substantially over 2001-2011 for both men and women, rural wage rates increased more rapidly, implying that nutritious diets became substantially more affordable over time. However, in absolute terms nutritious diets in 2011 were still expensive relative to unskilled wages, constituting approximately 50-60% of male and about 70-80% of female daily wages, and were often even higher relative to minimum wages earned from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). Since many poor households have significant numbers of dependents and substantial non-food expenditure requirements, it follows that nutritious diets are often highly unaffordable for the rural poor; we estimate that 45-64% of the rural poor cannot afford a nutritious diet that meets India’s national food-based dietary guidelines. Our results point to the need to more closely monitor food prices through a nutritional lens, and to shift India’s existing food policies away from their heavy bias towards cereals. Achieving nutritional security in India requires a much more holistic focus on improving the affordability of the full range of nutritious food groups and ensuring that economic growth results in sustained income growth for the poor.

Estimating the cost and affordability of healthy diets: How much do methods matter?
Estimating the cost and affordability of healthy diets: How much do methods matter?

Author: Headey, Derek D.

Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst

Published: 2023-04-24

Total Pages: 56

ISBN-13:

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Cost and affordability of healthy diet (CoAHD) metrics developed in a handful of academic studies have quickly become mainstream food security indicators among major development institutions. The World Bank and FAO now report CoAHD statistics in their widely used databanks, and the UN’s State of Food Insecurity and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) reports CoAHD metrics on an annual basis, with the headline conclusion being that over 3 billion people worldwide cannot afford a healthy diet. While quantifying affordability constraints is indeed a vital addition to the suite of global food security indicators, there is a dearth of scientific analysis on the accuracy and sensitivity of CoAHD methods. Published global CoAHD estimates rely on three implicit assumptions: that demographic differences across countries have little effect on average diet costs; that non-food expenditure requirements have little systematic variation across countries; and that international food price data is representative in a population sense and product coverage sense. Testing these assumptions on the cost of the EAT-Lancet reference diet, we find sizable sensitivity of baseline methods to adjusting diet affordability estimates for systematic cross-country differences in demographic profiles and non-food expenditure requirements, smaller effects of adjusting for inadequate food product coverage in international price data, and inconclusive evidence on issues of urban bias in price surveys. Our proposed methodological improvements significantly change country, regional and global estimates of healthy diet affordability, though not the headline conclusion that several billion people cannot afford a healthy diet. Even so, the accuracy, rigor, and reliability of CoAHD statistics warrant closer investigation given their widespread adoption and utilization.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018

Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2018-09-14

Total Pages: 278

ISBN-13: 9251305722

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New evidence this year corroborates the rise in world hunger observed in this report last year, sending a warning that more action is needed if we aspire to end world hunger and malnutrition in all its forms by 2030. Updated estimates show the number of people who suffer from hunger has been growing over the past three years, returning to prevailing levels from almost a decade ago. Although progress continues to be made in reducing child stunting, over 22 percent of children under five years of age are still affected. Other forms of malnutrition are also growing: adult obesity continues to increase in countries irrespective of their income levels, and many countries are coping with multiple forms of malnutrition at the same time – overweight and obesity, as well as anaemia in women, and child stunting and wasting.

Author:

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published:

Total Pages: 286

ISBN-13: 9251390983

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The Dental Hygienist's Guide to Nutritional Care E-Book
The Dental Hygienist's Guide to Nutritional Care E-Book

Author: Lisa F. Mallonee

Publisher: Elsevier Health Sciences

Published: 2024-07-19

Total Pages: 1226

ISBN-13: 0323826571

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Learn how to apply nutritional principles to promote optimal patient care! The Dental Hygienist's Guide to Nutritional Care, 6th Edition, explains how teaching proper nutrition can improve oral and systemic health. Case studies and clear, full-color photos and illustrations provide a basis for assessing, diagnosing, planning, implementing, and evaluating the care of patients. In addition, a solid foundation in nutrition prepares you for the subject's increased emphasis on the NBDHE examination. - NEW! Incorporation of the latest federal nutrition standards and initiatives includes Healthy People 2030 and the 2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. - Clinically relevant applications to dental hygiene include a focus on patient education and dental hygiene considerations. - Vitamin and mineral content is presented based on the oral effects of micronutrients. - Case studies and Health Applications in each chapter demonstrate how nutrition concepts can be applied to specific patient situations. - Robust practice opportunities allow you to test your comprehension and apply what you've learned. - Key terms are highlighted in each chapter and defined in the glossary.

Asia and the Pacific – Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition, 2022
Asia and the Pacific – Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition, 2022

Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.

Published: 2023-03-10

Total Pages: 168

ISBN-13: 9251375518

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This is the fifth edition of the Asia and the Pacific Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition annual report. This publication is led by FAO’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (RAP) and jointly contributed to by United Nations' partner agencies (UNICEF, WFP, WHO), on the region’s progress (or lack thereof) to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (in particular SDG 2 – Ending Hunger) and the World Health Assembly (WHA) 2030 targets on food security and nutrition. In recent years, previous editions reported that progress was stalling, then regressing and then more recently pushing us further off track. This reverse was evident even before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in 2020. The decline continued and worsened during the pandemic and the data is captured in this report. Updated estimates on the cost and affordability of a healthy diet show that nearly 45 percent of the region’s population cannot afford one. Reducing the cost of a healthy diet and making it more affordable is a critical element for achieving ending hunger (SDG2) and also the other SDGs. This year’s report also looks closely at food security and nutrition in urban areas which will increasingly contribute to the progress in SDG indicators as the proportion of the urban population across the region is set to cross 50 percent in this decade.