The Cordillera Administrative Region recorded a decline in the prevalence of malnutrition among zero to 59 months old children this 2022.
The National Nutrition Council-CAR presented this during the recent Regional Nutrition Committee (RNC) meeting based on the 2022 Operation Timbang plus (OTP).
The 2022 OTP data shows stunting prevalence among zero to 59 months old children decreased to 7.49 percent from 8.58 percent in 2021.
The province with the highest prevalence rate of stunting is Abra with 13.9 percent followed by Mountain Province with 13.67 percent, Apayao – 11.17 percent, Kalinga – 10.74 percent, Benguet – 5.55 percent, Ifugao – 4.43 percent, and Baguio City – 1.61 percent.
On underweight, the prevalence rate decreased to 3.05 percent from 3.19 percent in 2021. Still, Abra recorded the highest prevalence of underweight with 8.37 percent followed by Apayao with 5.17 percent, Kalinga – 3.94 percent, Mountain Province – 3.92 percent, Benguet – 1.66 percent, Ifugao – 1.40 percent, and Baguio City – 0.99 percent.
Overweight and obesity also decreased to 2.56 percent from 2.72 percent in 2021. Abra and Apayao topped the list with 4.42 percent and 3.46 percent, respectively; Mountain Province – 3.24 percent, Kalinga – 3.18 percent, Benguet – 2.54 percent, Ifugao – 2.07 percent, and Baguio City 0.70 percent.
On underweight, the prevalence rate decreased to 3.05 percent from 3.19 percent in 2021. Still, the province of Abra recorded the highest prevalence of underweight with 8.37 percent, followed by Apayao with 5.17 percent, Kalinga – 3.94 percent, Mountain Province 3.92 percent, Benguet – 1.66 percent, Ifugao – 1.40 percent, and Baguio City – 0.99 percent.
Wasting prevalence rate or low weight for height among children under five in the region remained at 1.47 percent with Aba registering the highest wasting prevalence rate with 3.84 percent. Kalinga has 2.30 percent, Apayao – 2.24 percent, Mountain Province – 1.94 percent, Benguet – 0.85 percent, Ifugao – 0.73 percent, and Baguio City – 0.22 percent.
The weight and height of 133,152 children in the region were measured through the 2022 OTP. The number is 73 percent of the 182,376 target population of children to be covered NNC-CAR.
Regional Nutrition Program Coordinator Bella Basalong said despite the decreasing trend of the prevalence of malnutrition in the region, reducing it further remains a challenge, thus, the need to scale up nutrition actions.
“‘Yun ‘yung challenge sa atin. Uray nu adda ti food, sana diyay quality of the food that we eat so that it will not give a burden sa body ng isang tao,” Basalong said.
The OTP is a mandatory activity of LGUs in coordination with the NNC-CAR where results are collated and released by the concerned agency to find out the nutrition status of children in the region and craft programs to address issues on malnutrition.
During the RNC meeting, the NNC-CAR also presented the nutritional status report of public schools, while the Department of Social Welfare and Development-CAR provided updates on the implementation of the supplementary feeding program in the region. – Debbie E. Gasingan
April 23, 2024
