SURVIVAL TUCKER - IMPROVED DIET AND HEALTHY INDICATORS IN AN ABORIGINAL COMMUNITY

The poor nutritional status of Aboriginal Australians is a serious and complex public health concern. We describe an unusually successful he alth and nutrition project initiated by the people of Minjilang, which was developed, implemented and evaluated with the community. Apparent community dietary intake, assessed by the 'store-turnover' method, an d biochemical, anthropometric and haematological indicators of health and nutritional status were measured before intervention and at three- monthly intervals during the intervention year. Following intervention , there was a significant decrease in dietary intake of sugar and satu rated fat, an increase in micronutrient density, corresponding improve ments in biochemical indices (for example, a 12 per cent decrease in m ean serum cholesterol, increases in serum and red cell folate, serum v itamin B6 and plasma ascorbic acid), decrease in mean systolic and dia stolic blood pressures, a normalisation of body mass index, and a norm alisation of haematologic indices. The success of this project demonst rates that Aboriginal communities can bring about improvements in thei r generally poor nutritional status, and that the store-turnover metho d provides a valid, inexpensive and noninvasive method for evaluating the resultant changes in community diet. Although the project was undo ubtedly effective in the short term, further work is in progress to as sess individual strategies with respect to sustainability, cost-effect iveness and generalisability.