MANILA, Philippines - The ongoing campaign of World Vision and Westmont Pharmaceuticals, through its Appebon Kid vitamins brand, to beat malnutrition among Filipino school children is firmly anchored on the principle “Healthy students are better learners.” Since 2013, this partnership has launched a number of programs such as Happetite School Caravan and Noche Buena packs to ensure that children in certain communities are provided with adequate support to help them address the problem on malnutrition.
Studies have shown that health-related factors such as hunger, malnutrition, and chronic illness can lead to poor school performance of children. In particular, unhealthy eating and nutrient deficiencies are strongly linked to poor grades, low-test scores, and lower educational attainment. Thus, worldwide, public health intervention programs are being launched.
Last year, Appebon stepped up its campaign by joining World Vision’s Child Sponsorship Program. To date, more than a hundred children have been assisted by the program.
“The partnership of Appebon and World Vision, including the support from partner doctors, in sharing the gift of good health through proper nutrition is based on our shared goal of providing hope to children who belong to underserved communities. It is about doing our part to help reduce malnutrition. Through World Vision’s Child Sponsorship Program, we help transform the lives of children, their families and communities to enable them to reach their full potential for a brighter future, says Renato Castañeda, division vice president and general manager of Westmont Pharmaceuticals.
Malnutrition, one of the leading causes of death among children under five years old, is one of the key advocacies of World Vision. It cited in a report that each year, there are 8.8 million children under five years old dying of several illnesses and half of these deaths are caused by malnutrition.
Based on a 2011 anthropomorphic study conducted by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), 20.2% of Filipino children aged 0 to 6 years old are underweight for their age, a sign that they have suffered or are suffering from acute malnutrition. It also cited that seven out of 100 children of the said age range are wasting or underweight for their height. Reducing the prevalence of underweight children is a key aspect of MDG for developing countries. In particular, the reduction of the prevalence of underweight children, ages 0 to 6, from 27.3% to 13.6% by 2015 is one of the MDGs set for the Philippines.