Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
Food and Nutrition Security/ Mid Day Meal Scheme/ ICDS/ PDS | A better millet for potential iron deficiency -Anura Kurpad and Rajashekhar Reddy

A better millet for potential iron deficiency -Anura Kurpad and Rajashekhar Reddy

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Apr 16, 2022   modified Modified on Apr 19, 2022

-The Hindu

Improving natural iron absorption from iron-rich grains is a better strategy than chemical iron fortification of cereals

Is iron deficiency universal and profound in India? Is it due to dietary iron deficiency? With the Indian vegetarian diet, containing 8.5 mg iron/1,000 Kcal-energy, women who eat adequately (enough energy for a sedentary lifestyle), should have an iron intake of about 15 mg/day, matching their daily iron requirement (15 mg/day). Adult men with their lower iron requirement (11 mg/day), and those eating for an active lifestyle with higher energy intake, are even better off. Therefore, dietary iron deficiency is not the major problem. Nor is iron deficiency the common cause for deficiency anemia in India; it is only one cause. Other nutrients like vitamin B12, folate and protein are also important. Indeed, anemia itself may be over-diagnosed, since surveys using capillary blood will overestimate the prevalence of anemia, and there is some doubt that the hemoglobin cutoff to diagnose anemia is incorrectly high, overestimating its prevalence.

Therefore, when body iron deficiency occurs, it is less likely to be due to an iron-deficient diet, and more likely due to poor absorption of dietary iron. With poor, cereal-based diets, iron is not well-absorbed, because of a substance called phytate that is present in cereal grains, which binds tightly to dietary iron and impedes its absorption. Similarly, drinking tea or taking paan after meals also blocks iron absorption because of other inhibitory substances called polyphenols, which also bind iron tightly. Chronic body inflammation also blocks iron absorption from the intestine.

This iron absorption blockade can be overcome by eating fruits (vitamin C) with meals, or simply changing behavior, like avoiding tea with meals. Alternatively, dietary iron intake could be increased in a natural manner, by eating iron-rich grains like millets, which will increase iron intake naturally, and not excessively. It is laudable that there is interest in promoting millet consumption in India for adults and children: these ancient grains are good for us in many ways, and not just for their rich iron content. They are also high in calcium, zinc, magnesium, potassium, dietary fibre, and important vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, folic acid, and niacin.

Millets are therefore a great solution for increasing dietary iron density, offering much more than a single nutrient to the diet. Replacing just 100 gm of the daily cereal (rice) intake with finger millet (ragi) will increase the daily iron intake by 50%, and calcium by 350%. These are spectacular benefits, but they can be offset due to the high intrinsic phytate content of the ragi grain, which could reduce iron absorption. Even so, this ancient yet local grain, offering more than a single nutrient, should be a dietary staple, with strategies devised to enhance absorption of its iron.

Please click here to read more. 


The Hindu, 16 April, 2022, https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/a-better-millet-for-potential-iron-deficiency/article65326094.ece?fbclid=IwAR29cmER1Oi6lK-XF0DWwj5KxNHPdLyagsdGLqwROAVpGDj2f9luLu-jkug


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close