DUMAGUETE CITY – Negros Oriental is gearing up to further reduce the stunting and wasting rates among children aged 0-59 months this year, an official said Monday.
At the opening of the 50th Nutrition Month celebration in July, Provincial Health Office chief Dr. Liland Estacion said one of their biggest challenges is to address the health of children in this age bracket, where stunting and wasting are prevalent.
Stunting in children means they are short in height for their age while wasting refers to those who are underweight or skinny for their height, Estacion said.
“These problems can be countered with proper nutrition, providing a healthy and nutritious diet for the children at home and in pre-school,” she said.
In 2022, provincial records showed that the stunting rate among children below 5 years old was 10.3 percent of the 150,262 population.
A 9.6 percent of the 155,279 population of the same age bracket was recorded in 2023.
The wasting rate was 3.3 percent in 2022 while 2.4 percent was posted during the following year.
For malnutrition (weight for age), the province logged 5.09 percent in 2022 and 4.7 percent in 2023 in the same age bracket.
Estacion said no data is available yet for 2024 as “Operation Timbang” has yet to start.
She attributed the decline to interventions that continue year-round such as medical missions, information and education on providing healthy food on the table, and stipends and allowances for health workers to monitor the children's growth.