Effects of eating habits and food components on working efficacy, and attraction level of tribal youths in traditional farming

Abstract

A multiform field study was performed over a period of four years from 2017-18 to 2020-21 to perceive the corporal working efficiency and attraction level in farming by the way of livelihood assessment of tribal youths. The manual working capacity of tribal youths is quite diminished owing to deviations in food components, residual deposits of harmful agrochemicals on food products, manipulated working atmosphere, and radical changes in the socio-economical condition of the tribals. The maximum tribal youths are physically weakened, have an impaired immune system, are severely malnourished along with multiple nutrient deficiency disorders due to ignorance of their traditional diets. It has been observed that there is on an average 46.07% decrease in own working efficiency with a 40% aberration in attraction level from farming activities over the last sixty years from 1960-61 to 2020-21. In the existing stipulation, only 14% of tribal youths are extremely attracted, and 19% are fairly involved, however, 27% of tribal youths take up farming as a subsidiary occupation, and 40% of youths are away from parental farming for livelihood. The traditional food components of tribals were also replaced from nutrient-affluent small millets, and underutilized fruits and vegetables to energy-loaded less nutritious rice, wheat, and potatoes. The traditional wisdom for uses of these historic food components is also decreased considerably concerning spending time. It is an imperative need on behalf of the tribal youth healthiness to have an adequate nutritional daily diet which will deliver a healthy life to recover their physical working capacity.