Islam Md Hafizul, Nayan Md Moniruzzaman, Jubayer Ahmed, Amin Md Ruhul
Institute of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Dhaka Dhaka Bangladesh.
Inspira Advisory and Consulting Limited Dhaka Bangladesh.
Food Sci Nutr. 2023 Nov 20;12(3):1367-1379. doi: 10.1002/fsn3.3855. eCollection 2024 Mar.
The dietary quality of women of reproductive age (WRA) is particularly important during preconception, conception, and pregnancy for themselves and their offspring. Poorly diversified diets resulting in inadequate micronutrient consumption may have adverse effects on their health. This narrative review summarizes the findings of studies reporting on dietary diversity and micronutrient intake by WRA in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Studies on WRA aged 15-49 years in LMICs, with a sample size of more than 150, report dietary diversity and multiple micronutrient intake based on 24-h dietary recall/food weighed record/food frequency questionnaire, and published between January 2011 and June 2021 were included. The results were compared to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommended cut-off for dietary diversity and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recommended age- and sex-specific estimated average requirements (EARs) for micronutrient intake. This review includes 35 articles, of which 21 focused on dietary diversity and 14 on micronutrient intake. The results showed that WRA in LMICs had inadequate dietary diversity, with mean food group consumption of only 3.0-4.84, and around 42.3%-90% of women consumed inadequately diversified diets (<5 food groups). Additionally, most studies found that WRA did not consume adequate amounts of essential micronutrients, particularly calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, folate, and vitamin B. However, the intake of vitamin C, niacin, and vitamin B was above the required levels. In conclusion, this review highlights the common inadequacy of dietary diversity and multiple micronutrient intake among WRA in most LMICs. Effective measures involving improving dietary diversity, food fortification with micronutrients, and supplementation programs could help improve the dietary quality and intake of optimal micronutrients by women in LMICs.
育龄妇女（WRA）的饮食质量在孕前、孕期和怀孕过程中对自身及后代尤为重要。饮食种类单一导致微量营养素摄入不足可能会对她们的健康产生不利影响。本叙述性综述总结了关于低收入和中等收入国家（LMICs）育龄妇女饮食多样性和微量营养素摄入情况的研究结果。纳入了对LMICs中15 - 49岁育龄妇女的研究，样本量超过150，这些研究基于24小时饮食回顾/食物称重记录/食物频率问卷报告了饮食多样性和多种微量营养素摄入情况，且发表时间在2011年1月至2021年6月之间。将结果与联合国粮食及农业组织（FAO）推荐的饮食多样性临界值以及印度医学研究理事会（ICMR）推荐的按年龄和性别划分的微量营养素摄入估计平均需求量（EARs）进行了比较。本综述包括35篇文章，其中21篇关注饮食多样性，14篇关注微量营养素摄入。结果表明，LMICs中的育龄妇女饮食多样性不足，平均食物种类摄入量仅为3.0 - 4.84种，约42.3% - 90%的妇女饮食种类单一（<5种食物类别）。此外，大多数研究发现，育龄妇女没有摄入足够量的必需微量营养素，尤其是钙、铁、锌、维生素A、硫胺素、核黄素、叶酸和维生素B。然而，维生素C、烟酸和维生素B的摄入量高于所需水平。总之，本综述强调了大多数LMICs中育龄妇女饮食多样性和多种微量营养素摄入普遍不足的问题。采取包括改善饮食多样性、微量营养素食品强化和补充计划等有效措施，有助于提高LMICs中妇女的饮食质量和最佳微量营养素摄入量。
