Public Nutrition in Complex Emergencies
Published paper1
A recent review of public nutrition in complex emergencies has been published in the LANCET. The paper is based on the personal bibliographic databases of the authors combined with a search of published work using MEDLINE, FirstSearch, Web of Science, JSTOR, ScienceDirect and Ingenta. The paper defines public nutrition as a broad-based, problem- solving approach to addressing malnutrition in complex emergencies that combines analysis of nutritional risk and vulnerability with action-oriented strategies, including policies, programmes, and capacity development.
The paper focuses on six broad areas; nutritional assessment, distribution of a general food ration, prevention and treatment of moderate malnutrition, treatment of severe malnutrition in children and adults, prevention and treatment of micronutrient deficiency diseases and nutritional support for atrisk groups including infants, pregnant and lactating women, elderly people and people living with HIV. The paper concludes that learning and documenting good practice from previous emergencies, the promotion of good practice in current emergencies and adherence to international standards and guidelines have contributed to establishing the field of public nutrition. However, many practical challenges reduce the effectiveness of nutritional interventions in complex emergencies and important research and programmatic questions remain.
Many gaps, challenges and constraints are highlighted in the paper. These include the need for;
- A modified survey methodology for surveys amongst pastoral and other dispersed populations.
- Development of user-friendly tools for assessing micronutrient deficiency diseases using biochemical indicators.
- Further standardisation for the assessment of adolescent and adult nutritional status.
- Implementing a range of food security interventions that enable people to meet their food needs and which address and prevent malnutrition.
- Effective, integrated and feasible nutrition interventions for people living with HIV.
- Further development of guidelines for smallscale fortification interventions at community level.
- Understanding the impact of supplementary feeding programmes at the population and community level especially in the context of inadequate household food security and in relation to alternative interventions.
- Strategies for integration into longer-term health facility services and policies.
- Mechanisms and processes that facilitate policies to be applied in practice.
1Young H, et al (2004); Public nutrition in complex emergencies, The LANCET, vol 365, November 20th, pp 1899- 1909
More like this
FEX: Summary of Lancet Series on Maternal and Child Undernutrition
Below are short summaries of the recently launched Lancet series of papers on Maternal and Child Undernutrition1. This high profile series focuses on the disease burden...
FEX: Lessons Learned From Complex Emergencies
Published paper1 Children being fed in MFS-H feeding programme Another paper in the same series in the LANCET reviewed the lessons learned from complex emergencies over the...
FEX: A Review of the advances and challenges in nutrition in conflicts and crises over the last 20 years
Abbreviated version of unpublished paper Food distribution at the ICRC kitchen in Tonj. By Frances Mason and Anna Taylor This paper is a shortened version of the complete...
FEX: Maternal Nutrition in Emergencies: technical review and round table discussion
By Emily Mates and Tanya Khara Emily Mates is a Technical Director with the ENN. Tanya Khara worked as an ENN consultant on the project. Through the INSPIRE consortium, the...
FEX: Launch of DfID’s new strategy paper on eliminating hunger
Summary of Publication1 The Department for International Development in the UK (DfID) recently launched a strategy paper (May 2002) 'Eliminating Hunger; Strategy for Achieving...
FEX: The Measurement of Micronutrient Deficiencies - A Long Way to Go
Analysis of the micronutrient status of populations affected by natural and complex nutritional emergencies poses special problems. However, it is also widely regarded as being...
FEX: Nutrition security emergency programming in diverse urban contexts
By Marie Sardier, Joanna Friedman, Maureen Gallagher and Julien Jacob Marie Sardier is Food Security and Livelihoods Advisor with Action contre la Faim (ACF) in Paris...
FEX: References for Special Supplement 2
Livelihood activities in South Sudan 1. World Health Organisation (WHO), Management of Severe Malnutrition: A manual for physicians and other senior health workers. Geneva:...
FEX: Implications of inconsistent anaemia policies for children and adolescents in Africa
Summary of published study1 Location: Sub-Saharan Africa What we know: There are many interdependent factors that cause anaemia (infectious and chronic disease, micronutrient...
FEX: Revisiting Sphere: new standards of service delivery for new trends in protracted displacement
Summary of research1 Protracted refugee situations (PRS) are those in which refugees find themselves in a long-lasting and intractable state of limbo. Roughly half of the...
FEX: Research Snapshots
The following provides a short summary of each of these important research studies. A fuller summary of each can be found online at www.ennonline.net/fex Inpatient management...
FEX: International Public Nutrition and Emergencies: The Potential for Improving Practice
Workshop summary by Anuradha Harinarayan, Feinstein International Famine Center, Tufts University Aworkshop was organised by the Feinstein International Famine Center in June...
FEX: Refugee Health, An Approach to Emergency Situations
New Book Published In recent refugee crisis, relief workers faced rapidly changing and complex environments, new disease patterns, huge humanitarian needs and relatively...
FEX: Nutrition in emergencies working group, SCN 2004
At the 31st Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN) session held recently in New York (21-25 March, 2004), progress of the Nutrition in Emergencies Working Group (NEWG) was...
FEX: Outbreak of micronutrient deficiency disease: did we respond appropriately?
By Dianne Stevens, Patricia Araru and Buwa Dragudi, Save the Children (UK) Dianne Stevens is a nutritionist with a Masters in Public Health and Tropical Medicine. She has been...
FEX: HIV/AIDS and emergencies: analysis and recommendations for practice
analysis and recommendations for practice Summary of a published review1 A Humanitarian Policy Network paper recently reviewed issues related to HIV/AIDS and emergencies. The...
en-net: Upto what extend iron flour fortification can increase the Hb level of anemic adolescent women if iron fortified wheat flour is feed to these anemic adolescent women for 3 months?
i am doing my Mphil research on iron wheat flour fortification for anemic adolescent women. can any one have any information or relevant site or paper that how much it will...
FEX: HIV/AIDS and Humanitarian Action
Summary of published report1 The Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) have just published a report which examines the implications of HIV/AIDS for understanding crisis and the role...
en-net: WFP DRC IS SEEKING A NUTRITION ADVISOR
Terms of Reference: Nutrition Advisor/World Food Prorgamme/Kinshasa, DRC Background Despite large investment and government renewed committed to combat malnutrition, the...
FEX: Minimum standards in post-emergency phase
Summary of online published paper1 In the acute phase of complex humanitarian emergencies, assessment data on service delivery and health outcomes for interventions are...
Reference this page
Public Nutrition in Complex Emergencies. Field Exchange 24, March 2005. p6. www.ennonline.net/fex/24/publicnutrition
(ENN_2401)