Taguig’s Malnutrition Prevalence Rate Continues To Decline

As Taguig City aims for the National Nutrition Council’s top award - the Nutrition Honor Award --- the city further improved on its malnutrition prevalence rate for year 2016.

According to the Taguig City Nutrition Office, the malnutrition prevalence rate in Taguig dropped to 0.45 percent in 2016 from 0.54 percent in 2015. There was a marked decrease in 2016's total number of 563 malnutrition cases among 0-5 years old compared to the 1,035 malnourished children in 2015.

For the last two consecutive years (2015-2016), Taguig City has recorded the lowest malnutrition prevalence rate among the 17 local government units (LGUs) in the National Capital Region (NCR). This achievement has been the result of extensive and innovative programs in the city.

Julie Bernabe, officer-in-charge of the Taguig City Nutrition Office, explained that 43 barangay nutrition scholars are dispatched to all the 28 barangays in Taguig for a wider and more effective advocacy campaign among the residents of its intervention programs. “Our local government has seven interventions against malnutrition which we conduct yearly with the help of various departments in the city,” she added.

These interventions include supplementary feeding schemes provided to thin and stunted pregnant women, young children ages 6-72 months old, and underweight school children Grades 1 and 2; and a massive administering of vitamin and mineral supplements like Vitamin A and Iron to prevent and cure micronutrient deficiencies.

In addition, the city also adopts desirable practices which ensure nutritional well-being such as the “Ten Kumainments” guidelines and other nutrition-related messages, provision of livelihood assistance to poor and malnourished households, and the delivery of maternal and child health and nutrition package services.

The local government has already started their annual nutrition interventions by conducting "Oplan Timbang" (OPT) in which the height and weight of children 0-5 years old in each barangay are collated in order to determine the child's nutritional status (either as  severely underweight, underweight, normal, or overweight). Oplan Timbang is conducted from January to March. Once the data are collected, the same are analyzed to determine the proper intervention depending on the child's nutritional status.

Michelle M. Adiong, a 37-year-old mother of five, expressed her gratitude to the local government stating that with the help of these interventions there was a distinct increase in the weight of her two undernourished children who are now considered healthy. “Nakatulong po nang malaki ang pagkain na ibinibigay sa amin sa health centers kagaya ng nutrilabs at micronutrients powder. Sinanay din po kami sa mga livelihood programs at tinuruan sa Parenting Education System kung saan natuto kami ng tamang pagpapalaki at mga karapatan ng mga bata,” Mrs. Adiong added.

Taguig City was awarded the prestigious Green Banner award by the National Nutrition Council-National Capital Region (NNC-NCR) for three (3) consecutive years [2013 to 2015]. In December 2016, the city received the CROWN award for this consistent high performance in the campaign to eliminate malnutrition.