Good nutrition requires:
- Access to food on a regular basis
- Consumption of adequate quantity and quality of nutrients each day
- Prevention or treatment of the many nutrition-related threats caused by unhealthy environments and infectious disease
Eating is a social activity and often a care-giving activity, especially for children and those who are sick or have special needs (such as pregnant women). Time, knowledge, and skills are important factors in nutrition.
Food is steeped in social and cultural tradition, influencing how ingredients are acquired and prepared, as well as who consumes what and when. Food and status are closely connected. Gender issues permeate almost every aspect of nutrition.
Efforts to improve the nutritional status of a population inevitably confront questions of resources and equity. Poor nutrition is both a consequence and a cause of poverty. For this reason, program efforts often distinguish between short- and long-route strategies for change, according to how deep the targeted determinants lie within the structure of a given society.
(Sources: Bhutta el al. 2008; Black et al. 2008; The World Bank 2006)