Nutrition and Global Health

Nutrition and Global Health began as a series of short literature reviews; since then, the work has become an authoritative and highly accessible resource on the vast and nuanced subject matter covered within. One of the major themes of the work is integrating nutrition into other disciplines: with its basis in biochemistry, human physiology, behavioural science, and even political studies, nutrition is a vital component in the success of interventions.

This book will provide students and practitioners with a roadmap for interpreting the global health landscape and create links between nutritional physiology, policy, and action. Based on widely used practices in global health, Nutrition and Global Health covers topics including:

Assessing nutritional status, nutrition surveillance, nutrition and infectious disease, and maternal and child nutrition Micronutrient deficiencies (including but not limited to iron, iodine, vitamin A, zinc, and folate), plus the nutritional double burden of disease Food security, sustainable food and agriculture, working in the global health environment, and nutrition in emergencies Answers to the questions “How do I design an effective intervention?” and “How can I decide whether or not my intervention has done what I intended it to do? ”

Unlike long and complex policy documents which rely on a solid foundation in basic sciences, Nutrition and Global Health is an accessible resource that allows clinicians, policy makers, and planners to better understand the global health landscape and stage better interventions.

Shawn W. McLaren is a registered dietitian, who studied for a BSc and PG Dip in Dietetics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He completed an MSc by dissertation while working as a community dietitian in the Eastern Cape in South Africa, which resulted in a series of publications in scientific journals. He then worked for non-governmental organisations in rural communities, providing outreach education and training on identifying malnutrition among children. Shawn has also worked as a community dietitian in the NHS in London, providing enteral feeding support to patients. He is a lecturer in human nutrition and dietetics, leading the BSc in Human Nutrition with foundation year at London Metropolitan University, and is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE). His teaching interests include lifecycle nutrition, energy balance and nutrition support.

1. Introduction

2. Assessing nutritional status

3. Nutrition surveillance

4. Nutrition and infectious disease

5. Maternal and child nutrition

6. Childhood malnutrition

7. Micronutrient deficiencies- iron, iodine, vitamin A, zinc, folate

8. The nutritional double burden of disease

9. Food security, sustainable food and agriculture

10. Working in the global health environment

11. Nutrition in emergencies