The Department of Health has started nutritional interventions in the Mimaropa region after a national survey in 2015 revealed three out of 10 children there are underweight—the highest rate in the country.
Mimaropa, made up of the provinces of Oriental Mindoro, Occidental Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon, and Palawan, ranked first among all the regions with the highest prevalence of underweight children in the country at 31.8 percent, based on the results of the 2015 National Nutrition Survey Updating of Nutritional Status of Filipino Children and Other Population Groups.
The Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology conducted the survey two years ago.
DOH Regional Director Eduardo Janairo said they will continue to implement feeding programs in Mimaropa “and improve the interventions and mechanisms aimed in addressing the specific nutritional concerns of each province.”
One of those interventions is the DoH-Mimaropa Vegan Caravan Workshop held at the Tree of Life Business Center in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro from April 20 to 22.
He said the introduction and adoption of the so-called raw vegan program “will ensure the improvement of the nutrition status in the region.”
A raw vegan food diet excludes not only meat and fish, but also dairy products like eggs and often honey, as well as other animal-derived substances. It includes raw vegetables and fruits, nuts and nut pastes, grains and legume sprouts, seeds, plant oils, sea vegetables, herbs, and fresh juices.
Janairo said underweight prevalence in Mimaropa increased from 27.6 percent in 2013 to 31.8 percent in 2015, while stunting prevalence rose from 35.8 percent in 2013 to 40.9 percent in 2015. On the other hand, wasting prevalence stayed consistent at 9.7 percent in both survey years.
Occidental Mindoro will be included in the 37 priority provinces for nutrition programs, having the highest underweight and stunting prevalence among the provinces in the region, Janairo added.
DoH-Mimaropa, in partnership with OLOF Raw Vegan and Plant Based Home Dining, has started its initial tour in the province of Oriental Mindoro. It successfully trained 36 Barangay Nutrition Scholars in a three-day culinary workshop on the technology of raw vegan and preparation of cooked plant-based food.
Janairo said inputs from the workshop will be included in the nutrition and feeding program that will be implemented region-wide this year. The caravan will visit all provinces and train all BNS of all towns in Mimaropa.
“We need to go back to basics and consider what is healthy, natural and beneficial for the body. We often neglect food that are essential and choose fast foods for consumption that are high in sodium and cholesterol, which can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and obesity,” stressed Janairo.
“Our objective is to train all barangay nutrition scholars of Mimaropa so that they may learn the technology and apply it to the regional nutrition feeding program for the benefit of all children in their respective communities,” he added.
This knowledge, Janairo said, is not new, but only forgotten due to the proliferation of instant foods in the market, “which most of us are familiar with and we must lessen in order for us to stay healthy.”
The workshop emphasizes the use of whole, organic, unprocessed, plant-based foods to achieve health throuhg “aesthetically refined and flavorful cuisine,” using local produce available in each municipality.
It also includes training on the proper use of equipment and preparation of ingredients, flavor balancing, knife skills, simple fermentation and food safety.
Participants were also trained in the food preparation for children, saving left-over fruits and vegetables and production of healthy livelihood to sustain healthy living.
“Consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables can make a person more focused and intuitive. It is also the best detoxification for the body and also saves a lot of money,” Janairo added.