Health status and prevalence of diseases among fish eaters and non-fish eaters in Tuticorin

Abstract

The research was undertaken to assess the health status of the fish eaters and non-fish eaters and assess the prevalence of nutritional and life style diseases among them. Totally 340 subjects, 173 fish eaters and 167 non fish eaters, in the age group of 20 to 40 years, both male and female subjects were selected. A sub sample of 10 fish eaters and 10 non - fish eaters were selected for the estimation of blood lipid profile. The demographic details, nutritional status, prevalence of nutritional and life style diseases and health status were evaluated. The results brought out the beneficial effects of consuming fish. Fish eaters had good nutritional status, normal blood lipid values and anthropometric measurements which were in the normal range. It was alarming to note that the total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein and very low density lipoprotein were more than the recommended values for the non-fish eating group. Prevalence of non communicable diseases showed that fish eaters had fewer incidences of these diseases while the prevalence of non communicable diseases was more among non-fish eaters. Consumption of fish was beneficial in protecting health and preventing degenerative diseases. The study brought out the beneficial effect of fish consumption.

Keywords

• Health status
• Fish