Mumbai: BMC’s health department to provide nutritious food ration to drug-resistant Tb patients

Mumbai: In order to ensure Tuberculosis (TB) patients get healthy food to maintain their nutrition level, soon the civic health department will be providing a nutritious food ration to drug-resistant Tb patients for the first two months of their treatment who are registered in the Directly Observed Treatment (DOTS) centres.

“If a person is suffering from TB, then the first two months are most essential and that is why we plan to give a ration of two months to the patients. In ration, we are planning to provide lentils, rice, gram flour, nuts and jaggery. The nutritious ration between 8 to 9 kg each month will be given at the DOTS centres,” said Dr Daksha Shah, head of the BMC TB Control Department.

A senior official said for the implementation of the scheme a budget of Rupees 1.2 crore has been proposed and even hygiene kit will also be provided to the patients in order to curb the spreading of the infection. “Once state government approved the proposal, soon hundreds of drug-resistant patients would be benefited. As if the scheme becomes successful, then it might be extended to all other TB patients who are taking first-level of DOTS treatment,” added a senior official.

TB occurs with a bacteria called tuberculosis which affects people with low immunity especially those who lack nutritious diet. In TB patients intake of nutritious foods is essential. As per WHO guidelines, under nutrition is a risk factor for progression from TB infection.

Also, the patients would be provided with a kit that would have surgical masks, hand sanitizes and a chemical for hygiene of people around the patients. “The civic health department has decided to provide nutritious foods in form of ration to these patients who registered in the DOTS centres for their treatment,” said Dr Shah.

A senior health official said TB is a contagious disease which can spread through the air so relatives of patients need be more careful to stop the passage of the bacteria among them. So, we have also introduced a kit where a patient would be provided with a kit with all required materials to stop it from spreading.