Mamta Kol has been eating chapati and salt at least two to three times a week since her husband lost his job two years ago following the Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020. The 32-year-old mother of two weighs just 40kg and she often misses her menstrual period due to weakness.
Although community health workers visiting Kol’s village, Kothar, in the Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh, have told her to include milk and fruit in her diet, she still eats the bare minimum – leftovers after feeding her husband and their two children aged 10 and 7.
“I find it tragically amusing that these workers ask me to drink milk and eat fruit every day,” Kol said. “There were days when my family had to sleep on an empty stomach.”
Her husband, Ramchandra Kol, used to work in a factory that made plastic bags in Ahmedabad. In March 2020, when a national lockdown was announced, Ramchandra’s factory stopped working and she had to walk for seven days to get back to her village. More than two years later, although normality has been restored, Ramchandra cannot bring herself to return. She now works for a daily wage on construction sites in the area.
The same story is unfolding in other towns in the area. At least 90% of men used to seasonally migrate to other cities and states for work. But since the first wave of Covid-19 hit, hardly any of them do this.
Ramchandra Kol now manages to find work once every four days on average. This has directly affected the quantity and quality of food on his family’s table. With inflation skyrocketing, the family cooks simple meals of dal and rice or vegetables and chapatis, but still, there is not enough to go around. When it is Mamta Kol’s turn to eat, there is hardly any dal or vegetables left.
Ram Naresh, district coordinator of the Campaign for the Right to Food, said that during the pandemic many tribal families received free cereals and help from the government, non-profit organizations and civil society. The Right to Food Campaign is an informal network of individuals and organizations working to help ensure the implementation of the right to food in India.
“The real problem now is that men are not going back to [or not being asked to] work and, for fear of another similar confinement, not allocate all their meager income to food,” he said. “This poor diet, coupled with the stress of Covid-19, has led to a change in the overall nutritional profile.”
food in the family
Women in the average Indian household are largely responsible for cooking and putting food on the table. Since they make sure everyone is well fed, they are often the last to eat. In a food-scarce environment, this means a poor diet consisting mostly of leftovers.
Dipa Sinha, an economist and lead campaigner for the Right to Food Campaign, said the anguish caused by the initial shutdown has intensified. During the two waves of the pandemic in India in 2020 and the summer of 2021, the Right to Food Campaign carried out Hunger Watch Surveys.
“Two years of post-Covid angst have exhausted the financial backers of most families, so reduce the variety of food on the tableSinha said. “Combined with less access to nutrition, women’s health has been affected more than men’s.”
There are many factors that influence differences in how food is allocated within households, including income disparity, social status, and relationships. But more important is the role of women in a household where they eat only after everyone else has eaten.
Soumya Gupta, a research economist at the Tata-Cornell Institute who has co-authored studies on covid-19 and women’s nutrition, said that physiologically, women’s nutritional needs differ from those of men.
“Depending on the stage of the life cycle, adolescent girls and women who are menstruating, pregnant or breastfeeding have higher nutritional requirements,” Gupta said. “This needs to be placed in the context of the dietary gap that has already persistently marked women’s food consumption.”
He added: “During the pandemic, this gap is likely to have worsened, and is unlikely to be evenly distributed among members of the same household, affecting the nutritional status of women more adversely, compared to men. mens”.
Food insufficiency, high cost
A varied daily diet rich in protein, vitamins and minerals ensures a nutritious lifestyle. A healthy diet also helps build a stronger immune system and promotes recovery from illness.
But during the pandemic, disruptions to food supply chains, coupled with significant loss of income as many lost their jobs, led to a crisis in food security and sufficiency.
the supply chain problems drive prices up, making basic goods unaffordable for many.
A 2021 study by the Tata-Cornell Institute of Agriculture and Nutrition found that during the pandemic there was a significant decline in household food expenditures, particularly on a diverse diet and especially on non-staple foods that are rich in protein and key micronutrients.
The researchers found that the average Indian’s diet costs about $1 or about Rs 80 per day, which is much lower than the “least expensive Eat-Lancet Commission recommended healthy diet” of $3-$5 (Rs 240-Rs 400). per person. per day.
According to Gupta, the free food rations provided through the public distribution system only ensured caloric sufficiency and prevented an increase in hunger levels. But micronutrient malnutrition is thought to have increased. the World Health Organization says that micronutrients are vitamins and minerals that the body requires in small amounts but are crucial for staying healthy.
“We make this distinction between calories and micronutrients to underscore that, even if caloric security was assured, nutritional insecurity was exacerbated during the pandemic,” Gupta said.
#AatmanirbharBharatKaBudget mission announcement POSHAN 2.0 merging the Supplemental Nutrition Program and POSHAN Abhiyan will focus on the overall wellness of beneficiary health. The integrated approach in the provision of nutrition services will strengthen the fight against malnutrition.
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She added that nutritional insecurity was also reflected in the significant decline in the diversity of women’s diets. The researchers found that women’s dietary diversity in 2020 was significantly lower than in 2019, with fewer women consuming high-protein dairy products and vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables, as well as other nutritious foods.
the National Family Health Survey-5 released in November last year showed that the total nutritional profile of indian women and children it had declined since the 2015-’16 survey. The fifth round of the survey was conducted between 2019 and 2021.
The report showed that the percentage of anemic women increased from 53.1% to 57% and of anemic adolescents (15-19 years) from 54.1% to 59.1%. This large change in nutritional profile clearly indicated that women’s health was directly affected by their socioeconomic conditions.
The survey also showed that the number of anemic children under the age of five increased to 67.1% from 58.6% in the last survey. This means that two out of three children under the age of five in India are anemic. In the same age group, the percentage of overweight children increased from 2.1% to 3.45%, meaning that their diet was centered on grains and processed foods.
What can be done?
Experts emphasize the importance of government policies that aim to ensure nutritional security by taking into account the nutritional requirements of women. For example, the public distribution system can provide nutrient-dense non-commodities, Aanganwadi centers can provide micronutrient-rich alternatives, and schools can provide protein-rich midday meals.
Despite overflowing stocks of wheat and other grains in government stores during the lockdowns, the problem was the distribution system, Sinha said.
According to Gupta, major reforms of the market and distribution systems can remove supply-side bottlenecks. “An expansion of direct benefit transfers can ensure that households have access to and can buy healthy food in local markets,” Gupta said.
For now, Naresh and his Right to Food Campaign team are working to help local residents understand the importance of growing their own food. With her help, some families, including Kol’s, have started growing vegetables daily on small plots outside their homes.
While this has helped, there is still not enough for the whole family. “I started growing some vegetables near the pond, but that is not enough for the four of us,” said Mamta Kol. “My main duty is to ensure that my husband and children are fed.”
Cheena Kapoor is a Delhi-based freelance journalist and photographer who focuses on health and social issues. Her Twitter account is @cheenakapoor.
This article was made possible by a grant from the Thomsons Reuters Foundation.
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