HAR6214: Nutrition in the Global South

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Module description

The aim of this module is to promote an interest and understanding of the nutritional issues particularly facing countries in the Global South, through considering the nutritional situation in low and middle income countries with respect to food availability and consumption at all levels.

Key topics encompass malnutrition in all its forms (micronutrient deficiencies and undernutrition, obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases).

It will explore the relationships between deficiency states with infection and growth, food security, the trend to urbanisation and the broad range of factors that influence food intake and nutritional status, e.g. socio-cultural and physical/financial access as well as climate change and global food systems.

A range of learning methods will help students to understand how nutritional status in the Global South could be improved.

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Objectives

By the end of the unit, a candidate will be able to:

• Critically appraise how food and nutrient requirements change throughout the life course, with special emphasis on intakes and requirements of those living in low and middle-income countries.
• Identify and critically discuss the factors (agricultural, economic, health, physiological, psychosocial, climatic) that influence nutritional status in the Global South and describe how these interact.
• Compare and contrast the methods used to assess nutritional status throughout the life course in different contexts, e.g. the community, hospital and in refugee populations and interpret anthropometric data.
• Discuss the coping strategies commonly used by households in response to food insecurity and critically evaluate how these and other systems and indicators may be used to predict food shortages and famine.
• Identify the main causes of malnutrition in all its forms and identify workable short and long-term strategies to monitor and address nutritional status.

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Teaching

This module can also be taken as part of the following courses:

This module is not available as a DDP module

Although the majority of the content will be delivered through self-study and lectures, the formal delivery by the lecturer will be interspersed with informal group work and discussions.

In addition to PowerPoint, short films will be used to stimulate discussion. As there is a large volume of material to cover, interactive lectures are the main method used in this module. There is one session which covers practical anthropometric skills used in low and middle-income countries and the interpretation of the data (the latter is also covered during lectures).

Teaching will be supported by resources in the virtual learning environment.

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Fees and funding

You can find out more about fees and funding for CPD modules in the School of Medicine and Population Health at the link below. We accept sponsored as well as self-funding students.

Fees and funding information

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How to apply

Find out what you need to do to apply for a CPD module in the School of Medicine and Population Health.

Apply for this module

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Contact

For more information on this module, speak to the lead academic: