Malnutrition affects school performance

Manila, Philippines -  Malnutrition remains as one of the biggest problems that constrain school-age children from attending or performing well in school.

According to the latest studies presented by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) at the recent National Nutrition Summit, almost one in every three Filipino children aged six to 10 years old are underweight and under-height for their age. The prevalence was highest among those nine to 10 years old. The magnitude and severity of underweight school-age children were very high in the provinces, particularly those in the Bicol region, Western Visayas region, and MIMAROPA (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, Palawan). The study results echo a World Health Organization report that over 30 percent of children in the country are malnourished.

Among pre-school age Filipinos, the prevalence of underweight children increased from 2008 to 2011 with Cagayan, ARMM, and again the MIMAROPA region having the highest prevalence. Almost one in three Filipino children aged 0 to five was also found to be stunted or under-height for their age.

Seeing the need to help form and strengthen a national strategy on child nutrition, the Infant and Pediatric Nutrition Association of the Philippines (IPNAP) is teaming up with the FNRI and Department of Education on various programs that aim to help eradicate the perennial problem of malnutrition. According to IPNAP executive director Alex Castro, “the countryside or rural population needs the most attention at the moment as most of the malnourished students come from the provinces. That is where we will also roll out our programs to make the biggest impact.”

For the past two years, IPNAP has been a partner of the Oh My Gulay Foundation (OMG) that was established to develop and implement awareness campaigns and programs among school children to combat malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies through promoting the integration of vegetables in the regular diet. To date, several schools in the Visayas and Northern Luzon region have benefited from IPNAP’s sponsorship of the program.

Made up of the country’s leading infant and child nutrition companies — Abbott, Fonterra, Mead Johnson, Nestle, and Wyeth — IPNAP strives to be a key contributor in promoting the health and well-being of infants and young children, to help eradicate malnutrition and reduce infant and child mortality in the Philippines.