Chijioke Iremeka As the prices of food items continue to soar, nutritionists have said families with low income could consume a healthy diet by embracing locally-grown food. The nutritionists advised that out of the 10 classes of food available, people should try and combine at least five of the 10 food classes to achieve a healthy diet for their families. PUNCH Healthwise reported that the average cost of a healthy diet for a Nigerian adult rose from N858 in January to N1,241 in June 2024, the June ‘Cost of Healthy Diet,’ according to a report produced by the National Bureau of Statistics and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition.
The NBS report showed that the CoHD increased by 45 per cent in the first six months of 2024, while the general inflation and food inflation rose to 33 and 40 per cent, respectively. The NBS noted that the June figure was 19 per cent higher than N1,041 per adult per day reported in May 2024. According to the World Bank, CoHD is the cost of purchasing the least expensive locally available foods to meet the requirement for energy and food-based dietary guidelines in current purchasing power parities.
The Director of Nutrition Services and Health Education at the Osun State Primary Health Care Development Board, James Oloyede, said combining home-grown foods to achieve a healthy diet was a major challenge for many households in the country. Oloyede emphasised that for Nigerians to feed healthily amid rising prices of staple food, they have to master this act of healthy food combination. The nutritionist said, “Nigerians find it difficult to achieve a balanced diet with home-grown food.
They don’t know which less expensive protein that can be combined with other foods to make their meals balanced. “Now, there are about 10 classes of food in the country and the target is to have at least five out of these classes of food in your meals to make them balanced. Anything less than this, there is the likelihood that the food will be unhealthy.
“These are the kinds of things we need to teach the people. There is no substitute for a healthy diet. Let nobody even think of it.
It is either your food is healthy or not healthy. “Our foods are diverse as a country and have about 10 food groups. Out of 10 food groups, it is expected that for an individual to make a healthy diet, such an individual would have a minimum of five classes of food in his diet in a day.
” Oloyede noted that when the meals do not have up to five of these food categories, it is likely that the food is not healthy, saying that if such an individual decides to go that way, his body will not be able to get enough nutrients for optimal growth and development. He explained: “For instance, we have our roots and tubers, cereal and vegetables. In the South, you have more tubers and roots.
In different parts of the North, you have more grains (rice, beans, corn, wheat, millet e.t.c.
), and in the South also, we have cocoyam, and vegetables among others. “There are also legumes. Legumes, which include beans, peas, lentils, seeds, and nuts (groundnuts) among others, are an inexpensive, healthy source of protein, potassium, and complex carbohydrates.
” According to him, Vitamin A is highly needed in the body for immune function, reproduction, healthy vision, skin health, proper functioning of the heart, lungs, kidneys, growth, and development among others, yet the body does not make Vitamin A. Oloyede said, “You will get Vitamin A from beef liver, cod liver oil, herring, sweet potato, carrots, and many other fruits and vegetables. Carrot also has Vitamin K, calcium for healthy bones.
“There are also protein-rich vegetables like pumpkin leaves (ugu) and amarantus (green). Other ones are water leave and watermelon. Watermelon has high water content, antioxidants, and amino acids may make for a better workout.
It is also high in potassium. “There is milk. Some people have different categories of milk.
There is unpasteurised milk from the praetorians which is their source of protein and others. There are eggs, meat, poultry, and others.” He noted that getting enough protein daily is essential for overall health, advising that households should ensure they have at least five of these classes of food to prevent malnutrition in children and adults.
Oloyede added, “If you don’t have meat, you have fish, or poultry, or milk, or crayfish depending on the one available. If they are not up to five, there is a likelihood that the food will be unhealthy. “On the final analysis, these are the things we need to teach our mothers and households on combining locally-grown food to achieve a healthy diet that cannot tear their pockets.
” Corroborating Oloyede’s statement, former Head of the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi, Bauchi State, Dr Mercy Eloho, who developed an app to educate mothers on nutrition and balanced diet, said there is a huge gap in nutrition knowledge in Nigeria, especially in the north. Eloho said that only education of households, especially in the North on food combination to achieve a balanced diet would do the magic. She said, “I didn’t encounter the severity of the problem of undernutrition until 2016 when I visited a remote, rural community with a friend.
“I saw dozens of children with visibly pronounced ribs, thin limbs, and discoloured hairs – all clear, clinical signs of severe malnutrition. “What I could not understand was that some of these children were sitting around large expanses of cultivated farms. I am aware that a lot of the food consumed in Nigeria is produced in the North and I couldn’t understand why they were severely malnourished amid plenty.
“With further research, I discovered a disconnect between food produced in the area, and how to utilise them to nourish their children. So we started by teaching them food combinations to achieve a healthy diet. “So, we need to teach these mothers the concepts of combining locally grown to prepare nutritionally adequate meals to achieve healthy diets for their household.
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