The National Nutrition Council – NCR encouraged school children to live a healthy lifestyle as the main nutrition message of the 3^rd School Media Caravan held on November 20, 2018 at Pembo Elementary School, Makati City. The event was held in partnership with the regional media group NCR Nutrition Communication Resource Group (NCR²). 

Conceptualized in 2016, the school media caravan is a strategy of NNC-NCR and NCR2 to promote good nutrition among school children and high school students. Developing healthy eating habits with regular physical exercise are essential for good health that they will carry on in adulthood. It is important to teach children at a young age the value of good nutrition and healthy lifestyle.

This year, the school media caravan focused on healthy diet and physical activity among school children. A total of 150 Grade 4 pupils of Pembo Elementary School participated in the half-day event.

Principal Mr. Allan Arcilla welcomed the guests and participants while Dr. Frederick Frago, Deputy for Clinical Operation of Makati City Health Department, gave a message on behalf of City Nutrition Action Officer Dr. Bernard Sese.

Regional Nutrition Program Coordinator Milagros Elisa V. Federizo emphasized in her opening message the importance of achieving and maintaining normal weight through healthy diet and physical activity among school children to prevent malnutrition and non-communicable diseases. She encouraged the participants to live a healthy lifestyle starting at a young age.  

In her talk, Nutrition Officer II Ms. Maria Camille Louise Chen explained the importance of healthy diet among school children to prevent undernutrition, overweight and obesity. The students were also introduced to the Pinggang Pinoy which they can use as guide in making their meals nutritionally balanced. The participants enjoyed singing the “Healthy Me” song to the tune of Baby Shark. 

MAPEH Coordinator Mrs. Diana Foster taught the participants to achieve healthy weight through physical activity. Simple exercises based on common daily tasks/chores were demonstrated to prevent overweight and obesity and the development of non-communicable diseases later in life. The school children also enjoyed the dancercise led by Mrs. Foster. 

After the lecture, the participants wrote down five (5) specific actions that they commit to do to make their everyday diet healthy and be more physically active. They all received Pinggang Pinoy for Kids placemat and Gulay bookmarks to guide them in making their “plate” healthy and remind them to eat vegetables.   Each of them received tumbler, notebook and sling bag as freebies at the end of the program. Lucky participants also won raffle prizes. 

In his closing remarks, NCR² Chair Marvin Capco encouraged the participants to share with their family, classmates, and friends all the learnings that they gained from the event. He encouraged everyone to have a healthy lifestyle, stressing “Timbang iwasto, sa tamang nutrisyon at ehersisyo!”.  (TAR/NPC MEVF/NNC-NCR)