This helps them select specific forest foods that are an important source of income and nutrition for the family . As food supplements, forest foods provide certain proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals that are not found in many staple crops, and may even stave off hunger and famine when drought, floods or pests and diseases cause crops to fail. Throughout Sahelian Africa, roots from the baobab are consumed as a drought food. In Senegal, the Wolof use the wild yam as a staple when grain crops fail. People living on the Chotanagpu plateau in India depend on forest foods for four to five months a year when agricultural production cannot meet their needs.
Women also use bark, roots and herbs for medicines.
Tribal women in India have been found to know medicinal uses for almost 300 forest species. In many areas, women have demonstrated that they are not only the primary users but also the most effective protectors of the forests. In India, women who recognized the link between deforestation and recurring floods and landslides formed the Chipko Movement. By literally putting their bodies between tree and loggers, they prevented tree felling and applied pressure on the government to investigate and eventually impose a 10-year ban on logging in the affected area. The sustainable use of forests requires the participation of all rural populations, including women.