Résumé
A global approach to alimentation is required to design cultural/y appropriate and acceptable preventive action. This article describes and analyzes Lao PDR’s food and nutrition status and its eating and cooking habits. The diet has remained very trsditionsl, prominently featuring rice, witti an accompaniment of vegetables and spices, and the available animal proteins are (fish, meat, insects). The rural fraction (over eighty percent) of the country’s populationfarm, hunt, fish, and collect. It clearly appears that the whole range of natural resources is resorted to, which provides a food input that is both veried, and sufficient even when cultivated foods are wanting. ln terms of food and nutrition, however, Lao PDR is now in a transitional phase witti important health and economic effects. It appears critical, in future food and nutrition policies, to focus on women and children and improve hygiene and access to drinking water and medical facilities. It is also momentous that, in their implementation, these policies appreciate the country’s eating and cultural traditions and its natural assets, as well as their diversity.