A child’s health is the anchor that determines his/her capabilities and limitations on the basis of meeting his/her emotional, mental, physical, and behavioral inevitabilities. Accepting the task of reiterating to parents the vital role of nutrition to their children’s well-being, Good Neighbors International Philippines (GNIP) kicked off a Nutrition Education Session to parents of underweight children on April 23, 2018, in Pugad Day Care Center, and Tibaguin Catholic Chapel.

With a total of 84 participants, proper nutrition, as the benchmark of every child’s dietary condition, was discussed to provide awareness on its importance to the everyday lives of children. The repercussions of having poor nutrition were also presented to the parents and how it could be defeated.

Ms. Cristina Sy Tamco Manio, who is the Officer-In-Charge as the Nutrition Officer of the municipality, mainly talked about the responsibility of the parents, not only by mere feeding the children with whatever kinds of food available, but rather of providing them with nutritious food. Misconceptions on the signs of undernourishment were also addressed to be able to keenly observe whether a child seems to be likely carrying the symptoms of undernourishment or not which can be noticeable in his/her daily routine, school performance, physique and state of well-being. Moreover, cooking demonstrations were also done to provide examples of nutritious food that are easy to make, easy in the pocket, and delectable all at once, and to know how to retain the nutrients in the food they prepare.

Providing awareness and empowering the parents with the knowledge they need to sufficiently and continuously feed their children with nutritious food are critical in instilling the importance of a healthy lifestyle.