■微量营养素缺乏是加纳北部儿童的主要问题。儿童中可用的当地食物和现有的植物性饮食模式不足以满足儿童的营养需求。除了增强饮食与动物源食品,其中大多数对于农村家庭来说是昂贵的,昆虫吞噬,这是文化上公认的,似乎是一个很好的选择。
■这项研究旨在1)记录研究区域中通常食用的昆虫类型以及导致或反对昆虫吞噬的原因,2)记录家庭餐添加或不添加昆虫的原因,和3)确定儿童食物中社区昆虫的营养贡献。
■在加纳北部的这项探索性研究中同时应用了定性和定量研究方法(N=392个人;6个焦点小组讨论)。
■白蚁,板球,蝗虫,毛毛虫被认为是社区中最常见的可食用昆虫。这些昆虫主要由儿童食用,但目前仅包括在少数家庭的家庭餐中。个人,社会文化,昆虫的感官特征,气候,和经济方面被认为是支持和反对昆虫吞噬的理由。现有的以社区为基础的儿童饮食无法满足可接受的推荐营养摄入量(RNI;在给定的年龄和性别群体内,RNI是每天摄入的营养素量,可以满足该组中几乎所有健康个体的需求)所考虑的所有营养素的水平,尤其是锌,维生素B-12,叶酸,和脂肪。纳入以社区为基础的可食用昆虫增加了所有11种微量营养素的RNI水平,并满足了儿童的锌,维生素B-12,叶酸,脂肪的要求。
基于社区的昆虫在研究环境中显示出满足儿童微量营养素需求的巨大潜力。未来的研究需要改善家庭对社区昆虫的采用,作为家庭膳食的一部分,并使昆虫为家庭所接近。
UNASSIGNED: Micronutrient deficiencies are a major problem among children in northern Ghana. Available local foods and existing plant-based dietary patterns among children are insufficient to meet children\'s nutrients requirements. Aside enhancing diets with animal source foods, most of which are expensive for rural households, entomophagy, which is culturally accepted, appears to be a great alternative.
UNASSIGNED: This study aimed to 1) document the types of insects commonly consumed and the reasons for or against entomophagy in the study area, 2) document the reasons for adding or not adding insects to household meals, and 3) determine the nutrient contribution of community-based insects in children\'s food.
UNASSIGNED: Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were concurrently applied in this exploratory study (N = 392 individuals; 6 focus group discussions) in northern Ghana.
UNASSIGNED: Termites, crickets, grasshoppers, and caterpillars were recognized as the most prevalent edible insects in communities. These insects were largely consumed by children but presently only included in household meals by a few households. Individual, sociocultural, sensory characteristics of insects, climate, and economic aspects were cited as grounds for and against entomophagy. Existing community-based children\'s diets were unable to meet the acceptable recommended nutrient intake (RNI; within a given age and gender group, the RNI is the amount of a nutrient ingested daily that would meet the needs of almost all healthy individuals in that group) level of all nutrients under consideration, especially for zinc, vitamin B-12, folate, and fat. Inclusion of community-based edible insects increased the RNI levels for all 11 micronutrients considered and met children\'s zinc, vitamin B-12, folate, and fat requirements.
UNASSIGNED: Community-based insects demonstrate a great potential for meeting micronutrients needs of children in the research setting. Future research is required to improve households\' adoption of community-based insects as part of household meals and to make insects accessible to households.