Millets or Shree Anna (coarse grains) can be the best bet for India’s fight against malnutrition and thereby tuberculosis (TB) in children, a Parliamentary panel has noted as it suggested a millet-based diet chart should be included in the central flagship PM-POSHAN (Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman) Scheme.
The Committee headed by Rajya Sabha MP Bhubaneswar Kalita noted that the twin problems of malnutrition and tuberculosis pose challenges to Health orders in considerable magnitude in certain States in the country.
“These two problems tend to interact with each other as nutritional status is significantly lower in patients suffering from tuberculosis. Similarly, malnutrition can lead to immunodeficiency which increases the person’s susceptibility to infection. In this light, the Government’s push for ‘Shree Anna’ (coarse grains) or millets as announced in Budget 2023-24 can play a key role in addressing the challenge of malnutrition particularly in children in India,†said the panel in its report submitted to Parliament recently.
It recommended the ICMR to undertake a research project in coordination with Indian Institute of Millet Research and develop a diet chart constituting different types of Shree Anna including Raagi, Bajra, Jowar, Ramdana, etc.
“The Committee is hopeful that this diet chart, if included in the PM-POSHAN Scheme, can go a long way in improving the nutritional status of children and thereby reducing the TB case load in the country,†said the report.
The panel’s observations come in the backdrop of various researches showcasing that these “smart foods†can boost growth in children and adolescents by 26 – 39% when they replace rice in standard meals. The results suggested that millets can significantly contribute to overcoming malnutrition.
A study in the journal Nutrients which is a review and meta-analysis of eight prior published studies and undertaken by seven organizations in four countries was led by Dr. S Anitha, Senior Scientist-Nutrition at the International Crops Research Institute of the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
“These results are attributable to the naturally high nutrient content of millets that exhibit high amounts of growth promoting nutrients, especially total protein, sulphur containing amino acids, and calcium in the case of finger millets,†Dr. Anitha was quoted saying in a report in ICRISAT.
Among the children fed millet-based meals, a relative increase of 28.2% in mean height, 26% in weight, 39% in the mid upper arm circumference and 37% in chest circumference was noted when compared to children on regular rice-based diets. The children studied consumed millets over 3 months to 4.5 years.
“These findings provide evidence that nutrition intervention programs can be developed and adapted to increase diversity in meals using millets, and thus to improve the nutritional content, including in school feeding and mother and child programs,†said Dr. Jacqueline Hughes, Director General, ICRISAT.
The Parliamentary panel's suggestion to include the PM Poshan scheme comes under the notion that undernutrition is feeding the tuberculosis pandemic, as has also been noted by a study published in Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and Other Mycobacterial Diseases in 2022.
“Undernutrition is the leading risk factor for TB, with a population attributable fraction (PAF) of 15%, compared to 7.6% for HIV. “Individuals who are undernourished are more likely to develop active TB compared to those with a healthy body weight.
“They are also more likely to have greater severity of TB, and less likely to have successful TB treatment outcomes,†said the study conducted by researchers from Boston University School of Medicine, USA.
