Significance of wild vegetables in micronutrient intakes of women in Vietnam: an analysis of food variety

The association between food variety and nutrient intake/health status amon g rural women was tested in two agro-ecological settings in Vietnam. Specia l emphasis was placed on the significance of wild vegetables 'Ratt Dai' in micronutrient supply and on the usefulness of food variety analysis in dete rmining their current role. Data from 7-day food frequency interviews and a nutrition/health survey with 93 and 103 rural women in the Mekong Delta an d the Central Highlands, respectively, were used in the analysis. Energy an d nutrient intakes in the groups with the highest food variety score (FVS) (high = greater than or equal to 21) in the two regions were compared to th ose with the lowest food variety score (low = less than or equal to 15). Th e high FVS groups in both regions also had a more diversified diet in terms of food categories. With the exception of low iron and riboflavin intakes in all groups, the high FVS groups had relatively adequate diets. A large v ariety of vegetables was used and only approximately half of the vegetable species were cultivated. In both regions the high FVS groups used a signifi cantly greater variety of vegetables than the low FVS groups. Wild vegetabl es contributed significantly to the overall micronutrient intakes, mostly c arotene, vitamin C and calcium intakes, but only the contribution to carote ne intake was significantly higher in the high FVS group. Overall, we concl ude that a food variety analysis is a useful tool in capturing the dietary role of wild vegetables.