The diets of women in India often too poor to meet their nutritional needs. A quarter of women of reproductive age in India are undernourished, with a body mass index of less than18.5kg/m². It is well known that an undernourished mother inevitably gives birth to an undernourished baby, perpetuating an intergenerational cycle of under nutrition. 

Five essential nutrition interventions for mothers include: 

1.      Improving the quantity and nutrient level of food consumed in the household.

2.      Preventing micronutrient deficiencies and anemia.

3.      Increasing women’s access to basic nutrition and health services.

4.      Improving access to water and sanitation, health education and other facilities, by providing sanitation and hygiene education, including menstrual hygiene.

5.      Empowering women to prevent pregnancies too often and too close together.

According to NFHS III data, more than a third (36%) of women has a BMI below 18.5, indicating a high prevalence of nutritional deficiency. Among women who are thin, 44% are moderately or severely thin. More than half of the women (55%) are anemic as depicted by NFHS III survey. Less than one-third of women in the lowest wealth quintile consume milk or curd at least once a week, as do less than half of women in the second wealth quintile. More than half of women in the three highest wealth quintiles consume milk or curd at least once a week. In the highest wealth quintile, three-quarters of women consume milk or curd at least once a week. The differentials in food consumption are even sharper for the consumption of fruit. Weekly consumption of fruit increases from 16 percent in the lowest wealth quintile to 72 percent in the highest wealth quintile. 

In this regard, a study is being designed to evaluate the nutrient intake among the rural females of Aligarh district in their reproductive years along with associated health consequences and the factors which are responsible for the nutritional status.