DUMAGUETE CITY, Aug. 3 (PIA) -- Nutrition advocates in Negors Oriental emphasized that nutritional problems among children can be prevented if proper interventions are given to their mothers at the early stage of their pregnancy.

National Nutrition Council (NNC) Negros Oriental Early Childhood Care and Development Focal Person Kristal Katrina Bacay said the problem on malnutrition starts at the early stage of child development in the mother’s womb.

“If a mother is also not well-nourished, then it is possible that the child growing is not well-nourished as well,” Bacay said.

Bacay said it is important that pregnant mothers are getting the right nutrition especially at the early stage of pregnancy until the first two years of age or the first 1,000 years of life.  

“We are focusing of the first 1,000 days because if bata lang ug dili nato masugpo ang malnutrition, then much greater negative effect pag-abot pod sa iyahang pagkahantung or sa iyahang adulthood and that would be a negative impact sa community (We are focusing on the first 1,000 days because if we don’t address the malnutrition problem at this stage, then it would lead to a greater negative impact when the child reaches adulthood). The first 1,000 days start during the woman’s pregnancy," Bacay said.

The NNC, in partnership with some local government units (LGUs) in the province including Dumaguete City, have implemented the Tutok Kainan Program which included pregnant mothers as its primary beneficiary.

The program aims to provide nutritious food commodities to pregnant women with nutrient deficiencies and children aged six to 23 months to provide the nutritional requirements of their body and address malnutrition problems like stunting.

There is also a supplemental feeding program for pregnant women where the ingredients of these meals come from the produce of Agrarian-Reform Beneficiaries organizations in the province.

NNC also gives pieces of Enhanced Nutribun (E Nutribun) to pregnant women as part of their nutrition interventions.

E-Nutribun was developed by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology.

Assistant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion, who also serves as the provincial nutrition action officer, also stressed that aside from providing proper nutritional interventions, it is important to extend immunization services for both mothers and infants to ensure their health.

“We will not only focus on the food of the mother and the child but also in the immunization. Sa pre-natal (check-up) tagaan siya ug ferros sulfate as nutrient for the mother. (Also) the vaccination of the mother and the child, if the child is not vaccinated, he or she will be prone to infection. Ma-useless ang preparation (During the pre-natal check-ups, the mother is provided with ferros sulfate which is a vital nutrient. We should also focus on the vaccination of the mother and child. If the child is not vaccinated, then the child will be prone to infection. All our efforts will be useless),” Estacion said. (RAL/PIA7 Negros Oriental)