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Malnutrition

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Malnutrition still prevalent among poor Pinoy kids –survey

More from: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/371841/news/nation/malnutrition-still-prevalent-among-poor-pinoy-kids-survey

Malnutrition among Filipino children aged 0 to 5 years remains prevalent, particularly those who belong among the poorest sector, the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) said in a survey.

FNRI, in its 8th National Nutrition Survey released Thursday, noted that while there was a slight decrease in the number of underweight children and those affected by stunting (low height-for-age) for 2013, numbers for other forms like wasting (low weight-for-height) and overweight went up.

FNRI said 19.9 percent of malnourished children are underweight, a few notches down from the 20.2 percent recorded in 2011. Stunting, meanwhile, registered at 30.3 percent from 33.6 percent two years prior.

Education suffers

When kids are hungry, it is not only their parents who worry but their teachers as well for they are not only pushed to do hard labor for food, their chances of getting education are also pushed to the sides.

“When the children come to school hungry, they cannot focus on the lessons. The difficulty to learn makes them uninterested to continue going to school,” said Lucena Concepcion, principal of Imba Elementary School in Caluya Island.

This is especially true for Jobert Juanites, who lives in nearby town Barbaza. He had to stop going to school at least twice; at nine years old, he is still in grade 2, two levels delayed for his age.

More from: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/296884/news/specialreports/more-than-half-million-pinoy-kids-suffer-from-severe-malnutrition
Race with time

The DepEd is racing with time to address the problem of malnutrition and its serious consequences. It is looking at a target of halving the number of undernourished

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