Study of the dietary preferences of deep-sea fisherman in West Bengal's Purba Medinipur district: A field survey report

The fishing area of Purba Medinipore district is about 40 km from the coast, and deep-sea fishermen capture a variety of marine species below 400 to 500 meters of the sea surface. Every year, the fishing season runs from July to March. Every fishing trip lasted no more than 8 to 12 days, during which time the fishermen worked hard for extended periods of time each day, slept very little, and worked in an uninteresting atmosphere. The fisherman spends a lot of time each day in the sun and the salty ocean water. Fishermen's eating habits and reckless lifestyle are also associated with anthropometric measurements, haematological measurements, blood and urine biochemical markers, and physiological conditions. The fishermen only consume a few specific food types during the maximum number of fishing excursions they do each year. The food preferences and consumption of fishermen in this coastal region of Purba Medinipore district are still not well documented. So, in the Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, fishermen's eating habits are try to be documented, and the surplus and deficiency of nutrients are being analysed in this field survey. To investigate the eating habits of this specific group of fishermen, the 24-hour dietary recall (24HR) questioner methods was used.The BMI was measured using a metric unit as a part of nutritional assessment. From the analysis of data, it was observed that deep-sea fishermen have deficiencies in vitamin A, and vitamin B9, and they consume excessive amounts of calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, calcium, iron, phosphorus, iodine, vitamin C and vitamin D every day. The majority of fishermen are addicted to tobacco, which allows nicotine to enter their bodies. The fishermen's dietary status and BMI are both within normal limits. The fishermen consume a lot of rice and other sea fish and pulses on a regular basis, which leads to an excess of calories, carbohydrates, protein, fat, etc. Inadequate vegetable consumption during a fishing excursion might lead to vitamin A and B9 deficiencies.