SINCE time immemorial, man has lived in the lap of nature. He has drawn sustenance fromfruits, vegetables and roots. When he fell ill, he turned to Mother Nature for remedy and relief. Nutritional disorders have a pronounced effect on the health of the community. Although micronutrient deficiency does not produce hunger, it gnaws at the core of health. Most of its consequences are not really perceived; like an iceberg, its bulk lies beneath the surface. Even problems like blindness and cretinism, a grave form of mental retardation, seem to be unrelated to diet to most people. That is why deficiency of iodine micronutrients is called " hidden hunger" and extraordinary efforts should be made to tap all available channels to drag iodine deficiency disorders into the open to make it more visible as an issue at the political level and empower families with the preventive knowledge they need. Deficiency in iodine jeopardises children's mental health and often their lives. This starts even before birth; serious iodine deficiency during pregnancy may result in still births, abortions and congenital abnormalities such as cretinism. This book will prove useful not only to students of Home Science but also to nutritionists, medical and public health practitioners and policy makers.

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