Nestle Promote Iron Enrichment To Address Childhood Malnutrition
In addressing child malnutrition crisis in Nigeria amid soaring food prices, Nestle Nigeria advocates iron enrichment to provide vital micronutrients.
The food company highlighted that iron fortification stands out as a highly effective approach for combating micronutrient deficiencies.
During a recent media training organized by Nestle for the Society for Media Advocacy on Health at its Agbara Factory in Ogun State, Dr Kanalio Olaloku, a nutrition specialist from Nestle Nutrition Institute Central West African Region, revealed this information.
Olaloku listed some of the strategies to end malnutrition including; food fortification and supplementation; regular deworming; dietary diversification; enhanced caregiver capability; multi-sectoral approach/partnership; and continued research/data availability.
The World Health Organisation says fortification is the practice of deliberately increasing the content of one or more micronutrients (i.e., vitamins and minerals) in a food or condiment to improve the nutritional quality of the food supply and provide a public health benefit with minimal health risk.
It states that fortification is an evidence-informed intervention that contributes to the prevention, reduction, and control of micronutrient deficiencies.
“It can be used to correct a demonstrated micronutrient deficiency in the general population (mass or large-scale fortification) or in specific population groups (targeted fortification) such as children, pregnant women, and the beneficiaries of social protection programmes, WHO declares,
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, children need the right foods at the right time to grow and develop to their full potential and the most critical time for good nutrition is during the 1,000 days from pregnancy until a child’s second birthday.
However, these right foods are barely accessible to children under five years in Nigeria as UNICEF says the country loses about 100 children per hour due to malnutrition. This translates to about 2,400 deaths daily.
It warns that if a child is malnourished, they are 12 times more likely to die.
Sadly, UNICEF data also indicates that Nigeria is ranked number one in Africa and second in the world in the total of children malnourished.
According to the Child Rights Agency, nearly half of all deaths in children under five are attributable to undernutrition, stressing that undernutrition puts children at greater risk of dying from common infections, increases the frequency and severity of such infections, and delays recovery.
Experts say malnutrition, in all its forms, imposes unacceptably high costs – direct and indirect – on the nation.
In her presentation which centred on the theme of the workshop, ‘Fortification as a Strategy’, Olaloku said micronutrient fortification was crucial in addressing under-nutrition in the country.
The nutritionist pointed out that adequate and appropriate dietary intake of essential vitamins, minerals, and trace elements (collectively referred to as micronutrients) is necessary for maintaining health at all life stages.
