The Transformation of Food Culture on the Case of Kyrgyz Nomads—A Historical Overview
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The subject chosen by the authors is interesting and generally corresponds to the topic of the journal. However, there are significant problems that hinder the perception of the article and the understanding of the results.
The problem statement, the logic of the presentation and the structure need to be clarified. Perhaps the perception of the subject as whole will be improved if the authors more specifically cover the subject of the article in the context of the journal's topic.
The methodological part should be clarified, revealing the essence of the issues and methods used for analysis.
The hypotheses and objectives of the research should be clearly formulated in order to make the authors' discourse more understandable.
The authors move from the historical review to the economic arguments, partly showing the political and social context.
The latter ones are based on some statistical series and qualitative data. However, there is no reason to assume exactly how the data presented by the authors are related to each other. In this regard, it is necessary to expand the arguments and the empirical basis of the article.
The empirical base can also be improved. In particular, it is necessary to show how exactly the data on changes in the structure of nutrition, the dynamics of morbidity and GDP per capita are related.
Conclusions and discussions of the results also need to be more clearly structured. It remains unclear which conclusions were obtained on the basis of the interview, and which were formulated by the authors themselves.
The historical review, which is very interesting and original for presentation, is a little detached from the presentation of modern data.
Author Response
Please see the attachment
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
The paper needs to be reviewed and edited by someone more proficient in the English language. There are many problems with inappropriate grammar and tense.
Author Response
Dear Reviewer,
Many thanks for your valuable suggestions. Our manuscript has been proofread now.
Best regards,
Authors
Reviewer 3 Report
This is a very interesting study which links dietary changes to political and economical shifts in nomadic Kyrgyz’s diet. It is a timely topic since there are several other cultures that are experiencing similar nutritional evolutions from their native diets to more Western-type diets and the resulting increases in noncommunicable diseases.
Initially, it was difficult reading the first few pages of the document due to the style of in text citation used. However, this was shortly overcome.
Data for the study might have been improved if there were more robust information directly from Kyrgyz nomad representation in the primary data collection. Also, there was little indication as to the level of gender, age and or regional representation in either the primary or secondary data collection.
Including more information regarding the extent of how the political and/economic manipulations influenced the diet would better support the alleged outcomes. Instinctively, this appears true, however, the effect on households and/ individuals would have been a more supportive documentation.
Please make sure that the axes for all graphs are labeled. For Western audiences, especially, it will allow for an easier flow in reading.
Please see attached file for more detailed comments.
Comments for author File: Comments.pdf
Author Response
Please see the attachment
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
I thank the authors for their attention to the comments and suggestions. However, the presentation of the results can still be improved.
- The presentation of Figures 2 and 3 gives information about gross growth, but does not show how this affects the structure of production.
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The quality of the presentation of Figures 6, 7, 8 needs to be improved.
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The explanatory possibilities of one-dimensional statistical data are very limited. Therefore, it remains unclear how to understand the growth of GDP per capita and the number of tractors. The authors also showed an increase in non-infectious diseases and a decrease in infectious diseases as an explanation for the negative effects of changes in the structure of nutrition.
4. The explanation of this connection is based on arguments from other studies. However, this logic has very serious drawbacks. The scientific system of argumentation requires the integrity of evidence. The changes made by the authors do not allow us to conclude that the transition to a Western food culture has worsened the health of the population. Perhaps the authors can provide details of the connection between hypotheses and conclusions.
Author Response
Please see the attachment
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
