UP Ibalon Bicol: malnutrition

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Linkage between poverty and the influenza epidemic

6/20/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

The startling rise of H1N1 flu cases to more than 300 in a matter of days in the Philippines makes Filipinos to look into why this happens. The rapid spread of the illness is easy to understand considering how poor the country is, says the Health Action Information Network (HAIN,) non-government organization (NGO.)

Dr. Delen de la Paz, executive director of HAIN believes the poor Filipinos die early because of lack of nutrition which leave them susceptible to the complications of disease. According to the 2006 Family Income and Expenditure Survey, the poorest 1.7 million families in the Philippines try to make both ends meet with an average budget of P18 per day (less than 50 cents/day.)

A case of point is the worsening flu problem together with other diseases endemic in the country. Dr. de la Paz has this to say:

“Bakit ba nagiging pneumonia ang influenza? It starts with viral infection that is supposed to be self-limiting in seven days. Pero dahil walang pambili ng gamot, nagkakaroon ng secondary bacterial infection. Lumalala na ang sakit pero nagtatrabaho pa rin. Ang sweldo kulang pang pambili ng pagkain, so paano na ang gamot?"----GMA News TV (06/06/09, Sabangan, A R.)

Dr. de la Paz criticizes the government for its superficial handling of the swine flu epidemic. According to her, the Department of Health (DOH) has advised Filipinos to raise body resistance against infection by having at enough sleep and rest, adequate exercise, control stress, have good hydration and eat nutritious foods. But Dr. de la Paz says, this simply can’t be done if one is poor, underpaid, overworked, hungry and malnourished.

In response to the criticism, Yolanda Oliveros, director of the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control says the DOH tries to address the problem by campaigning for an increase of the agency’s budget from only P11 billion three years ago to today’s P20 billion---funds most needed to expand medical coverage, purchase more medicines and hospital equipment, and improve the delivery of health services in the country.(Photo Credit: Claude Barutel) =0=

RELATED BLOG: "Politics of Health: Give the flu vaccines to those who need them most" Posted by mesiamd at 6/15/2009

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Labels: Dr. Delen Padilla-de la Paz, epidemic, Filipinos, H1N1 virus, HAIN, Health, Health Action Information Network, immunity, influenza virus, malnutrition, pandemic, poverty, Swine flu, Totie Mesia

Noodles for "brighter minds" in DepEd’s nutrition program draws sharp criticism

4/23/2009 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

The Council of Health and Development (CHD) through its director, Dr. Eleanor A. Jara decried the “deceitful and scandalous” distribution of poorly nutritious noodles by the Department of Education (DepEd) in its “Food for the School” program.

According to Dr. Jara, a total of 19,418,880 packs of overpriced salty instant noodles were allotted to 19 million public school children in the Philippines, but the food is hardly nutritious. P400 million pesos have been allotted to the feeding program that hopes to give “brighter minds” to many malnourished students.

Nutritional Value of a typical Noodle Pack:

Serving size: 1.5 oz. (42 grams/1/2dry noodle block and 1 tsp. of seasoning)
Calories: 190
Total Fat: 7 grams
Sodium: 910 mg
Carbohydrates: 26 grams
Protein: 5 grams

CHD, a national consortium of more than 50 community-based health organizations, advises that instead of masking the nutrition problem of Filipinos, the government must look into the causes and solutions of poverty in the country. (Photo Credit: Claudebarutel) =0=

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Labels: Council of Health and Development, Department of Education, DepEd, Dr. Eleanor Jara, food, malnutrition, noodles, Noodles Republic, nutrition, public school, Totie Mesia

The “paradoxical” faces of hunger: obesity and emaciation

11/18/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

A report shows the United States is beset with hunger problem just like the poor countries of the world. The US Department of Agriculture reports that 50% more American children compared to the previous year suffered hunger in 2007. Other findings are:

"_Some 691,000 children went hungry in America sometime in 2007 (above the 430,000 in 2006.) About one in eight Americans (12.5%) struggled to feed themselves adequately even before this year's sharp economic downtown.

_The families with the highest rates of food insecurity were headed by single mothers (30.2 percent), black households (22.2 percent), Hispanic households (20.1 percent), and households with incomes below the official poverty line (37.7 percent).

_States with families reporting the highest prevalence of food insecurity during
2005-2007 were Mississippi (17.4 percent), New Mexico (15 percent), Texas (14.8 percent) and Arkansas (14.4 percent.)

_The highest growth in food insecurity over the last 9 years came in Alaska and Iowa, both of which saw a 3.7 percent increase in families who struggled to eat adequately or had substantial food disruptions.)"---Associated Press; Yahoo.news.com (11/17/08, Sniffen, MJ)

What constitutes hunger for Americans is a bit unsettled compared to those who endure apparent lack of food in other countries. Although the definition of hunger isn’t clear, it is appalling that the richest country on earth is reported to suffer hunger like the Philippines, one among the top five world nations which deals with lack of food.

Understanding food deprivation in USA is hard given the tremendous resources the nation has. Many of its “hungry” people are obese and are within arms way from government welfare services which are meager or almost non-existent in the Third World. Sixty-five (65%) of the Americans suffer from excessive weight; among them are those who complain of hunger. Paradoxically, even the overweights experience hunger. Fat people are seen quite regularly lining up in welfare offices, food stamp lines, social service agencies, and soup kitchens.

It seems hunger looks differently in USA than in other places that most people know. In the Third World, the hungry are usually underweight and emaciated---- the usual signs of malnutrition from pervasive lack of food and high incidence of diseases. Each day the poor struggle to eat, mostly subsisting on skimpy food devoid of essential nutrients which explains their thinness. The social milieu in which they live shows food scarcity----unlike in USA where faulty food distribution is the problem.

Where food supply is abundant and readily available, obesity is traced to poor eating habits. Inadequate knowledge on nutrition, lack of exercise, and alternating over-eating and undisciplined binging are leading reasons for their excessive weight. Concurrent illnesses and the influence of genes are blamed for some forms of obesity, but almost all emaciated people suffer from lack of food and/or concomitant diseases.

So there’s the clue why people who go hungry can’t be easily recognized by their appearances. It’s interesting to know how many among the obese complain of hunger in America while in the rest of the world, the hungry are physically wasting away. It’s sobering to think how Americans could suffer hunger in the midst of plenty. (Photo Credits: Calvaryslo; MioCade; ClaudeBarute; ItuDk) =0=

RELATED BLOG: 'Hunger in the Philippines" Posted by mesiamd at 11/05/2008

Labels: food, hunger, malnutrition, Noodles Republic, nutrition, obesity, Philippines, poverty, Totie Mesia, USA

Hunger in the Philippines

11/05/2008 | Posted by mesiamd | Edit Post

Listed in decreasing order of countries with hunger problem, the Philippines (40%) ranked 5th with Cameroon (55%,) Pakistan (53%,) Nigeria (48%,) Peru (42%,) topping the list. For lack of food, 4 out of 10 households (40%) or about 35 million Filipinos face hunger. The finding is worse but consistent with Manila’s Social Weather Stations poll (SWS) showing that the average hunger for 2008 is about 16.8%.

Regardless of the surveys' accuracy what is important is to recognize the need to solve the worsening poverty, malnutrition, and food deprivation in the country. Bulacan Bishop Jose Oliveros of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said:

"Granted the survey holds true, the government should make concrete pro-poor programs to make sure every household gets enough nutritious food to feed their family" GMA TV News (11/05/08)

Oliveros blame corruption, not overpopulation as the main cause of rampant hunger. It is most severe in Metro Manila where 500,000 families suffer lack of food. He asks the government to put up programs like providing employment to the poor so that “ramdam ang gutom” reverses into “ramdam ang kaunlaran.” (Photo Credit: Jaridaking) =0=

Labels: Bishop Jose Oliveros, Cameroon, Corruption, food, hunger, malnutrition, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, poverty, social

UP Ibalon Bicol

Linkage between poverty and the influenza epidemic

Noodles for "brighter minds" in DepEd’s nutrition program draws sharp criticism

The “paradoxical” faces of hunger: obesity and emaciation

Hunger in the Philippines

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