Composition of African foods.

In discussing African foods focus is on cereals starchy roots and tubers legumes vegetables and fruits foods of animal origin fats and oils and nuts. Protein-energy malnutrition is the most important disorder in nearly all tropical countries. There are several causes of malnutrition and they may be attributed to geographical climatic seasonal or other environmental conditions as a consequence of which the right kinds of foods may not be available in sufficient quantities. Other losses may be because of faulty storage or because of rotting and damage caused by rodents insects and molds. Some of the most important causes of malnutrition are often underrated and these are the choice of food particularly in relation to the children and food distribution within the family. The choice is a culturally conditioned phenomenon and is determined by the sociocultural setup of the community. In promoting any health/nutrition education program the primary step is to study the nutritional problems with regard to the beliefs and the restrictions prevalent in the community for which the program is to be designed. The availability and the exploitation of locally grown foods should also play a major role in such a program.