Cebu – With the release of the Operation Timbang 2013 results, the overall incidence of undernutrition in the region has decreased from 5.66% in 2012 to 5.54% in 2013.

Negros Oriental Province had the highest incidence of malnutrition among the four (4) provinces at 7.36% up 0.20 percentage points from 7.13% in 2012. Following is Cebu Province which improved their malnutrition incidence at 7.16% in 2013, down 0.50% percentage points from 7.66% in 2012. Siquijor Province reduced the malnutrition incidence in the province from 6.56% in 2012, down 0.61 percentage points to 5.95% in 2013. Last is Bohol Province with an incidence of 5.30% in 2013, down 0.57 percentage points from 5.87% in 2013.

Among the sixteen (16) cities of Central Visayas, Guihulngan City (Negros Oriental) has the highest incidence of malnutrition at 10.24% in 2013, up 0.92 percentage points from 9.32% in 2012. Followed by Bais City (Negros Oriental) at 9.96% in 2013, up 0.32% from 2012. Naga City comes in next with a prevalence rate of 7.20% in 2013, down 3.75  percentage points, from 10.95% in 2012.

The city with the least prevalence of malnutrition is Lapu-lapu City (Cebu) with a prevalence at 1.28% in 2013, up 0.10 percentage points from 1.18% in 2012. Runner up is Toledo City (Cebu) with a prevalence of 1.91% in 2013 up 0.25 percentage points from 1.66% in 2012.

Among the 116 municipalities in Central Visayas, the top 10 municipalities with a high prevalence of undernutrition are the following in order: 1) Anda, Bohol; 2) Buenavista, Bohol; 3) Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental; 4) Malabuyoc, Cebu; 5) Tuburan, Cebu; 6) Batuan, Bohol; 7) Madridejos, Cebu; 8) Mabinay, Negros Oriental.  On the other hand, the 10 municipalities with a low prevalence of malnutrition are the following starting from the lowest: 1) Inabanga, Bohol; 2) Talibon, Bohol; 3) Minglanilla, Cebu; 4) Carmen, Bohol; 5) Panglao, Bohol; 6) San Francisco, Cebu; 7) Duero, Bohol;  8) Dauis, Bohol; 9) Trinidad, Bohol and 10) Jagna, Bohol.

The Operation Timbang (OPT) is the annual weighing of all preschoolers 0 to 71 months old in a community to identify and locate the malnourished children. The data collated from these weighing are then used for local nutrition action planning to identify priority areas and children who will be given priority interventions and also as targets for other programs that would help in improving the situation of the child and family. Several factors contribute to the increase or the decrease of malnutrition prevalence. With the recent calamities that have stormed Central Visayas, it is foreseen that in certain areas the malnutrition prevalence would increase.

Basing on the data, the efforts exerted by the different LGUs have overall decreased the regionwide prevalence of malnutrition by 0.12 percentage points which is a hard feat to accomplish taking into consideration the different factors that come into play. //DFB