Food behavior and folate status of hill-tribe schoolchildren and women of childbearing age on the northern border of Thailand.

An insight into the folate nutritional status of the population is important from a public health perspective. The protective effect of folate against neural tube defects (NTDs) is widely recognized. To assess the health and nutritional status, especially folate status, of vulnerable hill-tribe groups, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 197 schoolchildren and 136 women of childbearing age in Chaloem Phra Kiat District, Nan Province, Thailand. The nutritional status of the study group was investigated by dietary survey, and blood samples were taken to determine hematocrit, protein, and serum and red blood cell folate. Anthropometric measurements were taken to assess body size, composition and nutritional indexes. The health and nutritional status of the hill-tribe schoolchildren and women of childbearing age were found to be unacceptable, particularly inregard to folate status, which was indicated by low folate levels found in the blood samples, and in the intake of this micronutrient.

Mutagenicity study of weeds and common plants used in traditional medicine and for animal feed.

Mutagenicity and antimutagenicity potentials were tested using Ames' test in crude distilled water and absolute ethanol extracts from the stems and leaves of Peperomia pellucida (Linn.) Kunth, Eichhornia crassipes Solms, Colocasia esculenta Schott and Brachiaria mutica (Forssk.) Stapf, and the stems of Musa sapientum Linn. No mutagenic effect was found in any of the 10 mg/plate crude extracts of these plants for either TA98 or TA100 of Salmonella typhimurium, in a direct test and a mutagenic induced test by S-9 mix. Both distilled water and absolute ethanol extract of 0.5-10 mg/plate B. mutica showed strong antimutagenicity to AFB1, B(a)P and 4NQO in two tester strains. Ethanol extract of 0.1-0.5 mg/plate C. esculenta also showed antimutagenicity to AFB1, B(a)P and 4NQO in two tester strains, but the 0.5-10 mg/plate water extract had an antimutagenic effect only for B(a)P in TA98. The ethanol extracts of 5 mg/plate B. mutica and 0.5 mg/plate C. esculenta are cytotoxic, as indicated by their partial killing effect.

Health and nutrition survey of tsunami victims in Phang-Nga Province, Thailand.

The post-tsunami health and nutritional statuses of survivors were surveyed three months after the disaster struck. Non-participant observations and questionnaires were used to study the effects of the disaster on their lifestyles and health while residing in temporary shelters provided by the government and private donors. Anthropometrics were measured and dietary surveys conducted to elicit nutritional status. Our findings indicated good management of drinking water in the temporary shelters. Toilet construction and water supply were adequate, but wastewater and sewage systems were poorly managed. The study group still suffered from injuries after the disaster, and complained of back pain, stress, and sleep disorders. Most in the study group had unsatisfactory health behaviors, and obesity was an increasing problem among female participants.