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With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

researcher spotlight

Kalyani Raghunathan

Kalyani Raghunathan is Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit, based in New Delhi, India. Her research lies at the intersection of agriculture, gender, social protection, and public health and nutrition, with a specific focus on South Asia and Africa. 

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IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 80 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

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partnerships

Fondation Botnar is a Swiss-based foundation which champions the use of AI and digital technology to improve the health and wellbeing of children and young people in growing urban environments. It supports research, engages with diverse partners, and invests in emerging technologies and scalable solutions globally.

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Projects

Nudging for Good: A.I.-driven diagnostics and behavior change to improve diets and nutrition

Nudging for Good: A.I.-driven diagnostics and behavior change to improve diets and nutrition

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Publications

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Journal Article

The Global Diet Quality Score is associated with nutrient adequacy and depression among Vietnamese youths

2023Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang Nga Thu; Deitchler, Megan; Moursi, Mourad; Bergeron, Gilles
Details

The Global Diet Quality Score is associated with nutrient adequacy and depression among Vietnamese youths

The Global Diet Quality Score (GDQS) has been recommended as a simple diet quality metric that is reflective of both nutrient adequacy and noncommunicable disease outcomes. It has been validated among women of reproductive age (15–49 years) in diverse settings but not specifically among younger women. This paper examines the relationship between the GDQS and nutrient adequacy, anthropometric outcomes, and depressive symptoms among 1001 Vietnamese young women aged 16–22 years. In energy-adjusted models, the GDQS was significantly (p < 0.05) and positively correlated with intakes of protein (ρ = 0.23), total fat (ρ = 0.06), nine micronutrients (calcium, iron, zinc, vitamin C, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, and vitamin A) (ρ = 0.12–0.35), and the mean probability of adequacy of micronutrients (ρ = 0.28). Compared to young women with optimal GDQS, those with low and very low GDQS were two to five times more likely to have a mean probability of nutrient adequacy less than 50% and showed two to three times higher odds for depression. No association was observed for GDQS and anthropometric outcomes. In conclusion, the GDQS performed well in capturing nutrient adequacy and depressive symptoms among Vietnamese young women. Further research is warranted to explore the relationship between diet quality and depression in other settings.

Year published

2023

Authors

Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang Nga Thu; Deitchler, Megan; Moursi, Mourad; Bergeron, Gilles

Citation

Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang Nga Thu; Deitchler, Megan; Moursi, Mourad; and Bergeron, Gilles. 2023. The Global Diet Quality Score is associated with nutrient adequacy and depression among Vietnamese youths. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1528(1): 48-57.

Country/Region

Vietnam

Keywords

Southern Asia; South-eastern Asia; Diet; Diet Quality; Non-communicable Diseases; Nutrients; Trace Elements; Women

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.15053 Source record

Project

Sustainable Healthy Diets

Record type

Journal Article

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Journal Article

Mobilizing adolescents and young women to promote healthy diets in urban settings of Colombia and Vietnam: Lessons from two action-research programs

2023Bergeron, Gilles; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Correa Guzman, Nathalia; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; Restrepo Mesa, Sandra
Details

Mobilizing adolescents and young women to promote healthy diets in urban settings of Colombia and Vietnam: Lessons from two action-research programs

Adolescent and young women face grave nutrition challenges, but limited evidence exists on solutions to improve their diets. Action-research was done over 3 years (2020–2022) in secondary cities of Colombia (Medellin) and Vietnam (Thai Nguyen) to identify nutrient deficits in adolescent and young women diets; elaborate food-based recommendations to improve their nutritional status using Optifood linear programming; and engage respondents in incorporating suggested recommendations to their diet using a Social Innovation Challenge approach. A total of 1001 respondents were interviewed in Vietnam, 793 in Colombia. The probability of nutrient inadequacy in both locations was highest for iron and calcium, followed by the risk of deficiency for several other vitamins and minerals. Social Innovation Challenge teams (11 in Vietnam, 9 in Colombia) were created and supported in developing solutions to improve diets and tackle those deficiencies. Awards and resources were transferred to the most promising solutions to enable their implementation. Pre/post measurements of the interventions’ impact using the Global Diet Quality Score as outcome metric showed significant improvement in the diets of Challenge participants. After introducing a series of companion articles that offer detailed results on those various steps, this paper draws strategic lessons from an action-research perspective.

Year published

2023

Authors

Bergeron, Gilles; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Correa Guzman, Nathalia; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; Restrepo Mesa, Sandra

Citation

Bergeron, Gilles; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Correa-Guzman, Nathalia; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; and Restrepo-Mesa, Sandra. 2023. Mobilizing adolescents and young women to promote healthy diets in urban settings of Colombia and Vietnam: Lessons from two action-research programs. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1528(1): 42-47.

Country/Region

Colombia; Vietnam

Keywords

South America; South-eastern Asia; Healthy Diets; Nutrition; Nutrient Deficiencies; Research; Women

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-NC-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.15046 Source record

Project

Sustainable Healthy Diets

Record type

Journal Article

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Journal Article

Locally relevant food-based recommendations could increase iron and calcium intake for adolescent girls in Vietnam

2023Gie, Simone Michelle; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Bergeron, Gilles; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; Knight, Frances
Details

Locally relevant food-based recommendations could increase iron and calcium intake for adolescent girls in Vietnam

Unhealthy eating habits are common among adolescents in Vietnam, where transitioning food environments increasingly offer energy-dense micronutrient-poor foods. Successful behavior change approaches must be feasible and acceptable, promoting local foods that are available, accessible, and preferred. Yet, few studies have investigated the potential of food-based approaches for adolescents. We used linear programming to identify problem nutrients, local nutrient sources, and realistic food-based recommendations (FBRs) to improve nutrient intake among girls 16–22 years in Thai Nguyen, Vietnam. We then identified a reduced set of FBRs to prioritize the most critical micronutrient gaps. Calcium and iron targets could not be met in any realistic diet modeling scenario. The best set of FBRs included seven recommendations which could meet intake targets for 9 of 11 modeled micronutrients. The best reduced set of three FBRs targeting iron and calcium only—although more feasible for behavior change—was less effective at improving intake of these nutrients since fewer foods were recommended. Given the difficulty of meeting calcium and iron targets using local foods within acceptable dietary patterns, additional interventions, such as supplementation, staple food fortification, or increasing the availability of affordable calcium- and iron-rich foods, may be necessary to promote dietary adequacy for adolescent girls.

Year published

2023

Authors

Gie, Simone Michelle; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Bergeron, Gilles; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; Knight, Frances

Citation

Gie, Simone Michelle; Nguyen, Phuong Hong; Bergeron, Gilles; Tran, Lan Mai; Hoang, Nga Thu; and Knight, Frances. Locally relevant food-based recommendations could increase iron and calcium intake for adolescent girls in Vietnam. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1527(1): 97-106. https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.15036

Country/Region

Vietnam

Keywords

South-eastern Asia; Asia; Calcium; Staple Foods; Nutrients; Micronutrient Deficiencies; Iron; Behaviour; Diet

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-NC-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.15036 Source record

Record type

Journal Article