Food utilization, nutrition, health and farming households income: a critical review of literature

Abstract

Farming households' nutrition, health and income are important for rural/agricultural development and poverty alleviation. This article addresses the basic research question, how does nutritional status influence the general physical health and income of agricultural households? Better still, what is the synergy between agricultural households' nutrition, health and income? It handled these issues by digging deep into the magnitude of the effects of the economic relationships between these terms from the perspective of the agreement between public health professionals and economists to explain the mechanism through which nutrition (an established dimension of health) and health as a form of human capital are related to households' income. This article discusses the definition and measurements of nutrition, health and income, theories that explain their linkage, followed by empirical studies' review that thoroughly addresses the issue, both at the micro and macro levels. These reviews as well identified and present some knowledge gaps important for further agricultural research.