Malnutrition

Manila, Nov. 13, 2023 -- The Department of Health (DOH), along with United Nations (UN) agency partners, UNICEF and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and World Bank inked a memorandum of understanding formalizing the partnership in addressing malnutrition in the Philippines. As part of the broader Philippine Multisectoral…

"We had no idea my child could have died from malnutrition,” Annalou said. Her youngest child Florencio was identified as severely malnourished at a mass screening conducted by UNICEF and Samaritan’s Purse in support of families severely impacted by Typhoon Rai – locally known as Odette. The mother of five said that her family got by with her…

Lolita and her husband, Enjie, are a loving couple from Maasin Municipality, Southern Leyte in the Philippines. They work hard to support their two children, especially their three-year old son, Omar, who has cerebral palsy. Omar’s medication and medical tests are expensive, so Lolita helps Enjie, a construction worker, to earn extra income by…

Like many residents of General Luna municipality in Siargao island, Robelita Acedillo’s challenges didn’t end even after Super Typhoon Odette (International name: Rai) had passed. Her husband and her five children all fell ill after the storm. However, it was her infant triplets that had her the most concerned. A mother sitting inside their home…

Reymon Polleros, 7, likes staying in the evacuation center. “It’s big,” he says. “And it’s not cold here.” In the past two weeks, Reymon and his family have been taking refuge in Bantilis, the newly built two-story evacuation centre in Cagdianao, Dinagat Islands. The family had to evacuate as Typhoon Odette (international name: Rai) battered the…, Health problems, Like most buildings and houses in Dinagat Islands, running water in Bantilis was cut by the typhoon. “We have to bathe and wash our clothes in a stream some distance from here,” says Monilyn. “The source of potable water is even farther.” The youngest of her four children, 3-year-old Randel, suffers from malnutrition. “He cannot speak as well as…, Need for shelter, At the moment, the Polleros family is not able to leave Bantilis until they’ve rebuilt their home. “We don’t have money for it,” says Monilyn. “My husband plants cassava, and the crop has been destroyed.” Of the 54 families that took shelter in Bantilis during the typhoon, nine continue to live in the building. The weather continues to be rainy,…

In February this year, when Namraida Drapal was 13 months old, she weighed 6 kilograms only despite having a height of 71 centimeters. Community health workers identified her as a child with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). Just three weeks later, when Namraida was weighed again, she showed a marked improvement. Her weight had increased to 6.9…

One in every two children in the Bangsamoro region is malnourished. The COVID-19 pandemic has made the situation worse as children miss out on health and nutrition services due to severely limited outreach to remote barangays made more difficult by restrictions on movement within the region. Strict community quarantines have led to job loss and…, A long-standing, prevalent problem for children, Saida, 27, easily recognized the symptoms of SAM and gave them supplemental food and vitamins. She also encouraged the mother to give Norhata bigger meal portions, difficult advice to follow given the family’s meager income. “Malnutrition is common in our town especially among families with many children. Food is scarce so when babies start eating…, Allies in full recovery, Saida worked with the family to improve the nutrition of the twins and their older siblings. But starting a vegetable garden to supplement the family’s meals, and the vitamins provided by Saida were not enough. The twin’s progress was excruciatingly slow. But help came just in time for the twins. UNICEF, in coordination with the Health…, Investing in nutrition for every child, With the right treatment and support, a child with even the most serious SAM case can make a full recovery like Norhata and Norhaya. Thanks to the effort of Saida and their parents, the twin’s height, weight, and MUAC are now normal. But the real challenge is maintaining their normal nutritional status. “The twins are just two of the many SAM…

MANILA, 29 July 2020 – UNICEF Philippines lauds the National Nutrition Council (NNC) and the Department of Health (DOH) for a successful run of this year’s Nutrition Month in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. UNICEF calls on the Government, policymakers, and the public to work together towards robust health and nutrition services for children in…

PIAGAPO, Lanao del Sur, Philippines—Isnaira Markakim is carrying her two-year-old son Ansary at the foot of the valley where her family lives. Ansary and his brother, five-year-old Ashary, were diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition (SAM). The family’s remote home is at four hours walking distance from the town’s health center. It’s nearly a…

MANILA, 16 OCTOBER 2019 – Filipino children are increasingly suffering from poor diets, inadequate nutrition and food systems that are failing them, UNICEF warned in a global report today. The State of the World’s Children: Children, Food and Nutrition revealed that one in three Filipino children under five years old are stunted, which means they…

MANILA, 24 January 2019 – Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and UN children’s agency UNICEF, in partnership with the Department of Health and National Nutrition Council, launch an integrated nutrition and health program targeting the first 1,000 days of life to benefit vulnerable children and women in Samar, Northern Samar and…

The Philippines' leading airline, Cebu Pacific (PSE:CEB), marks the third year of its partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) through the Change for Good initiative with the expansion of the program to all flights in and out of its hub at the Clark International Airport. Beginning September 1, 2018, passengers on all Cebu…