Computer Assisted Management System for Nutritional Quality Measurement and Assurance of Processed Indian Food Preparations

摘要

Satisfaction of hunger as such is not a safe guide for the selection of appropriate foods. Sustaining abilities, active life patterns, dietary planning and sound nutritional principles should be some of the primary determinants of the food intake. Available information on the composition of Indian foods indicates that people from different regions and locales follow different dietary patterns. Indian dietaries depend on different food structures generally developed on the basis of palatability, availability and indigenous practices, which are region and location specific. Perceptions of nutrition and health needs are of highest significance and prominence in the national scenario. Whereas, the food security is assured for all by the determined production and productivity strategies of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, systematized effort for nutritional measurement and quality assurance is not accomplished so far. Further efforts to routinize the measurement techniques for the nutritional quality, monitoring the nutritional requirements on the basis of occupational requirements, age, gender characteristics and also provide methodological approach for assurance of the nutritional quality would be beneficial for building a strong nation with improved longevity. Under the Food and Nutrition unit of All India Coordinated Research Project on Home Science of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, an attempt was made to collect 1181 recipes across 9 Indian states and laboratory try outs were carried out on model preparation of the recipe and thereafter assessment of nutritional quality was conducted. The Indian Councillor Medical Research surveyed through number of samples and classified the nutritional requirement of different groups of people depending on the occupancy, age and gender characteristics which creates a base for up-linking the nutritional quality to that of nutritional requirement. With the programming within the two data structures, viz. one of the nutritional quality of Indian food recipes and the other nutritional requirements, a software was developed for effective management and measurement of nutritional quality and assurances for the nutritional requirement.