Food and Human Responses

Prabhakaran Nair finished his Doctoral research, specializing in soil fertility and plant nutrition, at Asia’s premier agricultural research and post graduate studies institute in New Delhi, India, the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in 1965 and thereafter worked for five years doing postdoctoral research at the State University of Ghent, Belgium. Professor Nair worked as Senior Research Officer and Associate Professor at Asia’s premier agricultural university, G.B.Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Pantnagar, India. He received the Senior Fellowship of the Alexander von Humboldt Research Foundation, The Federal Republic of Germany, and worked at the Institute of Plant Nutrition, Justus von Liebig University, Giessen, and later, at the Institute of Plant Nutrition, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart. Developed “The Nutrient Buffer Power Concept”, working with Professor Konrad Mengel and further tested its utility working with late Professor Horst Marschner.Professor Nair was appointed to the National Chair of the Science Foundation, The Royal Society, Belgium, and, affiliated to the State University of Ghent.  Subsequently worked as Professor & Head, Departments of Agriculture, Soil Sciences and Basic Sciences at the University Center, Dschang, The Republic of Cameroon, Senior Professor at the University of Fort Hare, Alice, The Republic of South Africa. Currently Chief Scientific Advisor, The Proletarian Foundation of India. Recipient of The Robertson Memorial Gold medal for outstanding work in Agronomy and many other national and international awards.Professor Nair has authored more than 100 peer reviewed research papers published in prestigious international journals, nine books (three published by Elsevier) of which one “Issues in National and International Agriculture” was launched by India’s great President late Dr A.P.J.Abdul Kalam. The only agricultural scientist in the world to have been invited six times to contributeinvitational chapters to Advances in Agronomy, the magnum opus of agricultural science. Professor Nair’s  ”The Nutrient Buffer Power Concept” project was shortlisted for the very prestigious U.S. $ 1 Million Rolex Awards For Enterprise 2012 of The Rolex Foundation, Geneva, Switzerland, for its originality from more than 3500 nominations worldwide, and is the only project selected for this coveted distinction from the Asian continent.Currently Professor Nair lives with his scientist wife Dr. Pankajam Nair (a nematologist trained in Europe), in Calicut, Kerala State, India

• Chapter 1: Introduction.- Chapter 2: Conceptual Models in Food-Behavior Relationship.- Chapter 3: Nutrition-Behavior Interface – The Way Forward in Research.- Chapter 4: The Brain-Behavior Link – a Conundrum.- Chapter 5: Neurotransmitters and Short-Term Effects of Nutrition on Behavior.- Chapter 6: Undernutrition – the Bane of Modern Times  and It’s Developmental Fallout.- Chapter 7: Mineral Deficiency and Behavior  vis-à-vis the Central Nervous System.- Chapter 8: Role of Dietary Supplements on Mental Function.- Chapter 9: The Sugar – Behavior Link.- Chapter 10: The Caffeine, Methylxanthines and Behavior Linkages.- Chapter 11: Alcohol, Brain Function and Behavioral Impact.- Chapter 12: "Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa – Two Most Important Eating Disorders of the Millennium".- Chapter 13: Overweight and Obesity – The Bane of Modern Times.- Chapter 14: Conclusion.