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Development of an online food database for the Batwa and Bakiga communities living in south-western Uganda

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 April 2021

G. Scarpa ,
L. Berrang-Ford ,
A. O. Bawajeeh ,
S. Twesigomwe ,
P. Kakwangire ,
S. Beer ,
G. Williams ,
C. Zavaleta-Cortijo ,
S. Lwasa  and
R. Peters
...Show all authors
G. Scarpa
Affiliation:
School of Environment, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT
L. Berrang-Ford
Affiliation:
School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT
A. O. Bawajeeh
Affiliation:
Department of Food and Nutrition, Faculty of Human Sciences and Design, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah3270, Saudi Arabia
S. Twesigomwe
Affiliation:
Indigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team
P. Kakwangire
Affiliation:
Indigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team
S. Beer
Affiliation:
Dietary Assessment Ltd, UK
G. Williams
Affiliation:
Dietary Assessment Ltd, UK
C. Zavaleta-Cortijo
Affiliation:
Facultad de Salud Publica y Administracion, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Peru
S. Lwasa
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
R. Peters
Affiliation:
Leeds Institute of Health Sciences, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT
H. Rippin
Affiliation:
WHO European Office for Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases (NCD Office) Moscow, Russian Federation
J. E. Cade
Affiliation:
School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds, LS2 9JT
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Abstract

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Proceedings of the Nutrition Society , Volume 80 , Issue OCE1: Winter Conference Live 2020, 8–9 December 2020, Micronutrient malnutrition across the life course, sarcopenia and frailty , 2021 , E19
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Copyright © The Authors 2021

Locally relevant food composition data are essential for measuring individual food intake (Reference Kigutha1). Many developing regions of the world lack this data, especially Indigenous communities, and have to use other national food composition tables as a proxy (Reference Rippin, Hutchinson and Evans2). Our aim was to construct an online database of locally consumed foods for two vulnerable populations living in south-western Uganda.

Using a community-based approach and collaboration with local nutritionists, we collected a list of foods for inclusion in the database through focus group discussions, individual dietary survey and markets and shops assessment. These foods were then processed to create the database using an online dietary assessment tool, myfood24(Reference Carter, Albar and Morris3,Reference Albar, Carter and Alwan4) . The food database was created using 6 steps: identification of foods for inclusion in the database; initial data cleaning and removal of duplicate items; link foods to existing generic food composition tables; mapping and calculation of nutrient content of recipes and foods; quality checks with local and international nutritionists; translation into relevant local languages.

We developed a food composition database for south-western Uganda including 148 commonly consumed foods complete with values for 120 micronutrients and macronutrients. Of the locally reported foods included, 56% of the items were already available in myfood24 database, while 25% were found in the Ugandan, Kenyan, and Tanzania food databases, 18% came from generated recipes and 1% from food packaging labels. The food database included 43% of fruits and vegetables products and dishes, 26% of cereals items and cereal based dishes (including dishes with higher percentages of cereals than vegetables), 14% of meat and fish dishes, and 5% of eggs and diary. Only 3% of products were sugary or sweet-based and 3% were included in oils, fats and condiments. Some cooking oils and fats were branded, while the majority of the other food items did not have any brand. Soft drinks (4%) and alcohol beverages (1%) corresponded to 5% of the foods included in the database.

The tool will be used for assessing the food intake, and tracking under-nutrition among the communities living in Kanungu District, Uganda.

Acknowledgments

We are very thankful to the Batwa and Bakiga communities that gave us precious information for developing the food database.

References

Kigutha, HN (1997) Am J Clin Nutr 65, 1168s–1172s.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rippin, HL, Hutchinson, J, Evans, CEL et al. (2018) Food Nutr Res 62.Google Scholar
Carter, MC, Albar, SA, Morris, MA et al. (2015) Nutrients 7, 4016–4032.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Albar, SA, Carter, MC, Alwan, NA et al. (2015) BMC Nutr 1, 29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar