Awareness and Consumption of Millets among School Children in Rural and Urban Areas of Telangana State, India

Author: Alam Prashanthi, R. Geetha Reddy, R. Neela Rani, T. Sucharitha Devi and A. Meena

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Abstract

Millet production and consumption has declined over the years due to various factors. The change in dietary practices resulted in nutritional disorders and other health problems. Recently, millets have gained popularity due to its health advantages and low agriculture inputs, less irrigation facilities, ability to mitigate climate change and capacity for food and nutritional security. To understand the present scenario of millet awareness and consumption, a study was conducted in Telangana state. The present study aimed to assess the millet awareness and consumption among school children in rural and urban areas of Telangana state. A cross-sectional design was adopted and questionnaires were employed to examine millet awareness and consumption among rural and urban areas of Mahabubnagar and Medak districts in Telangana state were selected. Students in the 8thand 9thgrades from rural (n=160) and urban (n=160) areas in both districts were recruited for the study. To find the association between categorical variables a Chi-square test was used. It was found that more than half of the respondents (56.25%) stated that they were aware of millets, whereas the remaining 43.75% stated that they were unaware of millets. It was also observed that out of 56.25% of school children who reported being aware of millets, 23.75% stated that they were aware of sorghum, pearl millet and finger millet. There was a significant association between millet awareness and consumption among school children in rural and urban areas at 5% level. These results suggested that awareness on millets contribute in millet consumption among the school children. Therefore, nutrition education on millets needs to be undertaken to create awareness among the students, thus, it may further can help in millet consumption.

Keywords

millets, millet awareness, millet consumption, school children, Telangana

Conclusion

According to our knowledge, this is the first research study to analyze the awareness and consumption of millets among schoolchildren. The main aim of this study was to understand the factors contributing to millet awareness in both rural and urban school children. The results revealed that awareness on millets contributed in the millet consumption. The study suggested that millets should be actively promoted, and nutrition education on millets should be implemented to raise awareness among schoolchildren, thus, it may further help in millet consumption. It also brought into light that more research needs to be carried out in creating awareness among school children. The study suggests future research on millet nutrition education via various media channels, knowledge development on the significance of millets, and interventions to change people's attitudes toward millet consumption.

References

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How to cite this article

Alam Prashanthi, R. Geetha Reddy, R. Neela Rani, T. Sucharitha Devi and A. Meena (2022). Awareness and Consumption of Millets among School Children in Rural and Urban Areas of Telangana State, India. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 14(4): 64-70.