The Division of Field studies carries out studies on community nutrition and dietetics, in addition to taking up continuous as well as special surveys of National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB).
Objectives
Focus areas
The division focuses on carrying out a wide range of investigations in the community nutrition and operational research in rural areas of Andhra Pradesh and other parts of India. .
The activities of the field division are mostly collaborated with State Governments, Central Government and International Agencies while planning and conducting diet and nutrition surveys, evaluating ongoing nutrition programmes and conducting the studies on socio-cultural aspects of nutrition.
Basic studies on community nutritio
Studies have been conducted to assess the health and nutrition status of primitive tribal, refugees of Bangladesh and nutrition & health and psychological profile of institutionalized children were also carried out. Impact of drought on diet and nutritional status of population of various states viz. Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Orissa was carried out. The continuous data collection on diet and nutritional status of population through NNMB and the one time assessment of diet and nutrition status of the community at district level through the project “Nutrition Profile of India”, were also carried out. Nation-wide surveys on IDD are also being carried out by this division.
Operational Research
Diet and nutritional status of the special age groups such as adolescents and elderly people were also carried out. The results revealed that both the groups were subsisting on inadequate diets and their diets were efficient of almost all the nutrients. About half of the elderly were suffering from CED and the prevalence of under nutrition was about 53% and 40% in adolescent boys and girls respectively
Evaluation Studies and the findings
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) in Andhra Pradesh under APER baseline survey in rural and tribal projects. Among the rural areas about 68% - 82% of mothers of 0-72 months children utilized at least one of the ICDS services and 39% of the pregnant and lactating women utilized at least once ICDS services.Similarly, more than three fourths of the target population was wailing ICDS services in tribal areas also.
Other studies