Celebrations of Rashtriya Poshan Maah (National Nutrition Month, September 2018) by

the National Centre of Excellence and Advanced Research on Diets (UNICEF supported)

and Department of Food and Nutrition, Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi

The National Centre for Excellence and Advanced Research on Diets (NCEARD), Lady Irwin

College (Supported by UNICEF India) has been set up to support the Maternal Health Division,

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India to provide technical assistance on

maternal malnutrition, with regard to convening policy discourse, supporting development of

maternal malnutrition guidelines (overnutrition, undernutrition).

To celebrate the Rasthriya Poshan Maah (National Nutrition Month, September 2018) the

NCEARD with the support of the Department of Food and Nutrition, Lady Irwin College

conducted various activities.

1. Test and Treat Anemia Camps: In collaboration with Ministry of Health and Family

Welfare and National Centre of Excellence and Advanced Research on Anemia

(NCEARA), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi

Date: September 10 – 30, 2018

Duration: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

Place of Activity

1. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi

2. Ministry of Health and Welfare, Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi

Activities conducted at the camps

1. Screening of population for anemia by estimating hemoglobin levels using digital

hemoglobinometers

2. Provision of pamphlets, badges (anemia free), IFA supplements (to people who are

diagnosed with any form of anemia)

3. Counseling on importance of essential nutrients, dosage, frequency and consumption of

IFA tablets, inclusion of iron and vitamin C rich foods in diets, do’s and don’ts for

management/prevention of anemia

4. Display of iron rich snacks including freshly prepared (paushtik cheela, vegetable

vermicelli, vegetable poha etc) and ready to eat (paushtik mathri, paushtik laddoo,

paushtik namakapare, cereal-pulse mix etc) snacks

5. Provision of iron rich recipe books

6. Provision of iron rich take home snack (Bengal gram and Jaggery)

2. Health Talk addressing mothers and adolescents

Date: September 15, 2018

Duration: 9:30 am to 1:00 pm

Place of Activity

Nagar Palika Senior Secondary School, Tilak Marg, New Delhi

Activities conducted

The counseling conducted by PGDDPHN students began with an introduction about our motto of

improving nutrient intake and health of adolescents and their mothers.

COUNSELLING OF MOTHERS

•Diet Diversity

Variety of food items available and their importance in our overall health was discussed.

The frequencies of all food items to be eaten and their combinations were told along with the

types of inhibitors and their effect on our nutrient intake. Proper methods of food preparation

were discussed in order to maintain the nutrient content of the food items.

• Micronutrient Deficiency

Taking the counseling session further information on micronutrient deficiencies in a story

form emphasizing adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables to be taken were discussed.

•Communicable and non-communicable diseases

The differences between communicable and non-communicable diseases were discussed.

The impact of proper diet in preventing and curing some of such diseases were discussed with

the mothers.

•Family Planning

Importance and measures of family planning were told along with the pros and cons of

each contraceptive method. Impact of proper family planning on the health of mother and

children, economic conditions of the family and overall well-being were discussed.

•Hygiene

Importance of hygiene and sanitation were told along with some basic hygienic practices to

be inculcated in daily life.

With this the counseling session for the mothers was over and in the end a quick question round

took place were the counselors asked ladies about the things they got to learn and the changes

they will bring about in their daily lives. Some ladies also asked some questions in their mind

and discussed how they liked the counseling and promised to bring healthy changes in their life

and dietary patterns.

COUNSELING OF ADOLESCENTS (Both boys and girls)

• Adolescence

The definition of adolescence, undertaking bodily changes, increasing nutrient

requirements and the sources of all macro and micro nutrients were discussed along with the

common way to identify food items rich in micronutrient, eg: green leafy vegetables for iron,

red, yellow, green foods for vitamin A and white food items for calcium.

•Menstrual Hygiene

Menstruation, it's significance and the importance of adequate nutrient intake during

menstruation and in general were discussed. The significance and reason of different symptoms

such as pain in stomach, lethargy etc. was discussed. In addition, importance of adequate dietary

intake to lead a healthy life was also told.

•Balanced Diet

Importance of balanced diet was discussed and the frequencies of food groups to be taken

in a day were told along with the reason.

•Alcohol and Drug Abuses

Types of drug and alcohol abuses and their ill effects were discussed. It was an interactive

session where the students told about different abuses they see around and the importance of

staying away from all these were then told to them.

•Hygiene

Importance of hygiene, sanitation and regular cleaning of the body were discussed.

The students were taking interest in the counseling hence it was both informative and interactive.

3. Market Stall on iron rich foods at the National Dissemination Cum Orientation

Workshop of Anemia Mukt Bharat and Home Based Young Child Care Guidelines, Hotel

Le Meridian, New Delhi

Date: September 18, 2018

Duration: 8:30 am to 5:00 pm

Place of Activity

Hotel Le Meridian, New Delhi

Activities conducted

1. Display of iron rich snacks including freshly prepared (paushtik cheela, vegetable

vermicelli, vegetable poha) and ready to eat (paushtik mathri, paushtik laddoo, paushtik

namakapare, cereal-pulse mix, spinach burfi, Bengal gram and jaggery) snacks

2. Display of iron rich and vitamin C rich food items, food group wise

3. Display of counseling material on importance of essential nutrients, dosage, frequency

and consumption of IFA tablets, inclusion of iron and vitamin C rich foods in diets, do’s

and don’ts for management/prevention of anemia

4. Display of recipe book on iron rich snacks

4. National Nutrition Week Celebrations

Date: September 7, 2018

Duration: 9:30 am to 5:00 pm

Place of Activity

Department of Food and Nutrition, Lady Irwin College

Activities conducted

The Department of Food and Nutrition, Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi, celebrated

National Nutrition Week on 7th September, 2018 in collaboration with Mrida Group

(Earthspired), a social Enterprise.The theme of the Seminar was, ' Nutrition Awareness Creation

and Promotion of Health through Underutilized Millets and Amaranth’. Intra-College Recipe

Competition and display was organised for millet and amaranth based Earthspired products.Ms

Iksha Chhabra, Business Head (Earthspired) and a successful Alumni of Lady Irwin

Collegecoordinated the competition and inspired students to develop new products using millet

and amaranth. Inter-College PosterCompetition was organised on the theme, 'Reviving Healthy

Traditional Palates with Millets and Amaranth.Dr. Vandana Shiva, a scholar, environmental

activist and afood sovereignty advocate was the Chief guest for the NNW celebration.Dr. Shalini

Gaur (Senior Scientist, ICAR-IARI) spoke on ‘Nutritional and Nutraceutical Profile of Millets

with emphasis on Pearl Millet, Sorghum and Quinoa”. Ms. Para Dholakia (Assistant Professor,

Shaheed Rajguru College of Applied Sciences, DU) spoke on, "Amaranth, an Ancient Grain and

its Application in Creating Foods with High Nutritional Value".

Mr. Arun Nagpal, MD, MRIDA Group presented a lecture on "Health and Wellness through

Social Entrepreneurship: The Mrida story". The session also highlighted possibilities

ofinternships/ field research/product research in collaboration with Lady Irwin College . The

event successfully ended with prize distribution ceremony by Dr. Anupa Siddhu (Director, Lady

Irwin College) , Mr. Arun Nagpal, Dr.Manisha Sabharwal(Incharge, Department of Food and

Nutrition) and Dr. Sangeeta Goomer (Associate Professor, Lady Irwin College).Prizes

comprisedcertificates and gift hampersto the winners of Poster and Recipe Competition.