Description
IP Innovative Publication Maternal Diet and Foetal Growth A Bio-Cultural Exploration by Dr Aarti Prasanna Nawathe
Nutrition is influenced by biological and cultural factors. This study attempts to explore and evaluate dietary practices from a biocultural standpoint which aims to ascertain the nutritional pattern of expectant mothers. The foetus in the uterus is completely dependent on the nutrition provided by its mother. This nutrition is thought to be the most important intrauterine environmental element that modifies the expression of the foetal DNA, resulting in lifetime repercussions. The behaviour is known as "foetal programming," which has given rise to the contemporary notion of "foetal origin of adult disease." Women require a nutritious and safe diet not only during pregnancy, but also during their adolescence or prior to pregnancy, in order to build appropriate reserves for pregnancy. The goal here is to investigate nutrition in relation to its social setting. Nutritional anthropology seeks to understand the interplay of biological and social variables that influence the use of available food and the nutritional health of individuals