Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective

This Report has a number of inter-related general purposes. One is to explore the extent to which food, nutrition, physical activity, and body composition modify the risk of cancer, and to specify which factors are most important. To the extent that environmental factors such as food, nutrition, and physical activity influence the risk of cancer, it is a preventable disease. The Report specifies recommendations based on solid evidence which, when followed, will be expected to reduce the incidence of cancer

Consuming cassava as a staple food places children 2-5 years old at risk for inadequate protein intake, an observational study in Kenya and Nigeria

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Inadequate protein intake is known to be deleterious in animals. Using WHO consensus documents for human nutrient requirements, the protein:energy ratio (P:E) of an adequate diet is > 5%. Cassava has a very low protein content. This study tested the hypothesis that Nigerian and Kenyan children consuming cassava as their staple food are at greater risk for inadequate dietary protein intake than those children who consume less cassava.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A 24 hour dietary recall was used to determine the food and nutrient intake of 656 Nigerian and 449 Kenyan children aged 2-5 years residing in areas where cassava is a staple food. Anthropometric measurements were conducted. Diets were scored for diversity using a 12 point score. Pearson's Correlation Coefficients were calculated to relate the fraction of dietary energy obtained from cassava with protein intake, P:E, and dietary diversity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The fraction of dietary energy obtained from cassava was > 25% in 35% of Nigerian children and 89% of Kenyan children. The mean dietary diversity score was 4.0 in Nigerian children and 4.5 in Kenyan children, although the mean number of different foods consumed on the survey day in Nigeria was greater than Kenya, 7.0 compared to 4.6. 13% of Nigerian and 53% of Kenyan children surveyed had inadequate protein intake. The fraction of dietary energy derived from cassava was negatively correlated with protein intake, P:E, and dietary diversity. Height-for age z score was directly associated with protein intake and negatively associated with cassava consumption using regression modeling that controlled for energy and zinc intake.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Inadequate protein intake was found in the diets of Nigerian and Kenyan children consuming cassava as a staple food. Inadequate dietary protein intake is associated with stunting in this population. Interventions to increase protein intake in this vulnerable population should be the focus of future work.</p

Agricultural Value Added, Food and Nutrition Security in West Africa: Realizing the SDG 2

This study examined how food security will be achieved in ECOWAS through agricultural value added. The study made use of panel data sourced from the World Bank World Development Indicators (WDI) and the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) databases; it employed the fixed effects econometric technique. Results from the analysis showed that 1% increase in agricultural production, agriculture employment, agricultural valued added, political stability and absence of violence as well as access to electricity all things being equal, will bring about 14.2, 56.9, 1.9, 1.5 and 42.5% increase in food security. Thus, the study recommended that the governments of the West African countries should ensure that there is adequate security in the economies so as to encourage people to practice agriculture