PHILIPPINE CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM
Prevalence of Malnutrition Among Filipino Children Zero to Five Years Old, 2003 to 2015
On June 25, 1974, or exactly 43 years ago, the late strongman President Ferdinand E. Marcos issued Presidential Decree No. 491 or The Nutrition Act of the Philippines. By this edict, the National Nutrition Council was created and the month of July declared as Nutrition Month.
Yet still, malnutrition continues to stalk Filipino children five years old or younger. Since 2003, of children aged 0 to 5, two of every 10 were underweight, while three of every 10 were stunted or too short for their age.
Wasting — or thinness — has affected a growing number of Filipino children from 2003 to 2013. It decreased slightly to 7.1 percent in 2015. On the other hand, only 2 to 5 percent of children aged 0 to 5 years old were said to be “overweight”.
But who will take care of our children and the sick, and where exactly could they get appropriate care?