Development and evaluation of nithya sevaniya wholesome biscuits

Need for the study**:**

A Balanced diet is defined as one which contains a variety of foods in such a quantities and proportions that the needs for energy, amino acids, vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrate and other nutrients is adequately met for maintaining health, vitality and general well-being and also makes a small provision for extra nutrients to withstand short duration leanness.  According to ICMR 2020 the energy requirements of an individual are, adult male who does moderate work is 2710Kcal/d, for an adult female who does moderate work is 2130Kcal/d, for children of age group 6-9 is 1700Kcal/d, for pregnant women it is 3070Kcal/ d, for men above or equal to 60 is 1700Kcal/d, for women above or equal to 60 is 1500Kcal/d. Failing to meet these requirements leads to malnourishment and nutritional deficiency disorders. Under nutrition is not only an important cause of childhood morbidity and mortality; but leads also to permanent impairment of physical and mental growth of those who survive. Persistent undernutrition through the growing phase of childhood leads to short stature in adult. About 16.2% of adult men and 18.7% women have body mass index below 18.5 which indicates chronic nutrition deficiency. About 18.5% children are born with low birth weight, 32.1% are underweight for the age group below 5 years of age. A healthy diet helps to protect against malnutrition in all its forms, as well as noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), including diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer. The world’s lifestyle has seen a significant transformation in recent years as a result of adjustments made to dietary practices, job schedules, stress levels and sleep cycles. People neglect to invest time and effort in choosing the proper food during this process. As a result, the majority of people neglect to meet their fundamental dietary requirements. This has led to the emergence of numerous diseases that are currently presenting as significant health concerns. Ayurveda has taught us that prevention is better than cure. Prevention of any disease, for that matter, is possible only when there is good health. Ayurveda says that food, sleep and healthy sexual life are the three pillars of life. Food, being the foremost of them, calls for immediate attention. An ancient balanced diet consists of food articles which are explained in Nityasevaniya ahara (The food articles which are advised to take daily that will fulfil the body requirements).Considering that people may not be able to compromise on their daily work to spend adequate time in cooking the right food, the present study aims at creating a dietary supplement using simple natural ingredients prescribed by the Ayurvedic seers. This preparation can be consumed by healthy people of any age group and of either sex. Since time immemorial, these ingredients have proven to play a key role in promotion and maintenance of health.

Nithya sevaniya ahara dravyas are mentioned in brihatrayee , the dravyas that are mentioned below are from Ashtanga hridhaya sutrasthana matrasitiyam adhyayam