Davao City – It’s that time of the year again! July marks the celebration of Nutrition Month in which this year’s theme: “Timbang iwasto sa tamang nutrisyon at ehersisyo” was elaborated by the National Nutrition Council XI (NNC XI).
NNC XI as being embodied by the Regional Nutrition Program Coordinator Dr. Maria Teresa L. Ungson, was invited by the Davao media club during Kapehan sa Dabaw last July 06, 2015 at SM City Davao.
Together with Dr. Ungson were the presidents of the association and federation in the region - Nutrition Action Officer (NAO) President of Region XI and Vice-President (Mindanao) of National Nutrition Action Officer Association Dr. Azucena Dayanghirang; District/City Nutrition Program Coordinators (D/CNPC) Association President of Region XI Lynneth Demaisip; and Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNS) Federation President of Region XI and LuzViMin Barangay Nutrition Scholar President Jocelyn Lumaad – to answer the questions and the concerns of the interviewers.
One of the highlights of (the question and answer during) the interview was from TV5 which states, why is the theme concentrated on ‘Timbang iwasto sa tamang nutrisyon at ehersisyo’, in which there are varied concerns on health? This question was addressed to Dr. Ungson in which she said, “Because of the increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity among our children. And also, take note that overweight and obesity is more of a problem of the adults right now.” She quipped, “If children had problems of undernutrition; adults have over nutrition.”
Although adults have the most prevalence rate in overweight and obesity, she wanted to focus on the children to easily supervise and take them to proper nutrition and lessens the outcome as these children become adults.
“Yet we have increasing trend of over nutrition nationwide among children and we want to monitor this while they’re young because children having too much weight could form up into poor health and bring up illness and diseases when they grow up as adults” , Dr. Ungson added.
Every nutrition status is a focus under NNC. Whether it is undernutrition or over nutrition, it is not to be forsaken for.
To address undernutrition, we should focus on the first 1000 days as Dr. Ungson and Dr. Dayanghirang mentioned in the interview.
The impact of malnutrition during the critical 1,000 days between a woman’s pregnancy and a child’s 2nd birthday can last a lifetime.
Malnutrition early in life can cause irreversible damage to a child’s brain development, immune system and physical growth
The 1,000 days between a woman’s pregnancy and her child’s 2ndbirthday offer a unique window of opportunity to shape healthier and more prosperous futures.
Start as early as possible, suggests Dr. Ungson. Being conscious and guided nutrition intake at an early stage can shape a stable health as a child grown. The right nutrition during this 1,000 day window can have aprofound impact on a child’s ability to grow, learn.
Overall, as this year’s nutrition month theme focuses on the importance of proper nutrition and exercise, the NNC XI encourages all Local Government Unit (LGU), media, the academe, and other stakeholders of the Davao region to have the enabling mechanism to provide for physical activities.
