defination
     Is  the  process  of  monitoring  changes  in  the 
      nutritional status of a population over a period of 
      time. 
     Nutrition  surveillance  involves  Data  collection, 
      processing,    Analyses,     Interpretation   and 
      Communication  
   Types/methods of nutritional 
   survillance
   1. Large-scale food and nutrition surveys
     The surveillance system should make an inventory of 
   all large national surveys 
   •related to health, food and nutrition that could act as 
   a basis by breaking data down .
   •at sub regional, district and village levels. In particular, 
   frequent surveys such as: 
    • Demographic Health Survey
    •   National  Nutrition  Survey  or  National  Food  Security 
    Surveys  should  be  considered.  Try  to  include  selected 
    nutrition indicators. 
  Advantages and disadvantages
          advantages
  • covers a wide range of problems
  • does not require special arrangement
  • it is relatively cheap
  • covers a wider area
   disadvantages
   • The information generated is to a large extent unreliable, 
    incomplete and inaccurate
   • Most  of  the  time,  data  from  passive  surveillance  is  not 
    available on time
   • Most of the time, you may not get the kind of information 
    you desire.
      Types…..
      2.  Repeated small-scale surveys/active type of 
      nutritional survillance
      Repeated small-scale surveys are population-based surveys 
       that  use  standard  methods  to  collect  quantitative  and 
       qualitative data. 
      They assess the type, severity and extent of malnutrition 
       and  its  causes  among  a  representative  sample  of  the 
       population (children and/or adults).