Laki sa Gatas team visits Oro school

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

STUDENTS of Camaman-an Elementary School were given a dose of information and entertainment as the Laki sa Gatas (LSG) team of Nestlé Philippines made its one-day stopover yesterday to teach them proper nutrition and the benefits of drinking milk.

The Grades 2 and 3 students jammed with the LSG team during the Kids’ Session held at the school’s covered court as they were taught the basic food groups and the benefits of exercise, drinking milk and getting enough sleep – which are needed to attain good nutrition.

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Bb. Pilipinas International 2005 Lara Quigaman, an LSG advocate, shared with the students her life story when she was still a budding beauty queen.

Quigaman, who is an avid milk drinker herself, said her determination to excel has pushed her to become what she is today.

“When I was young some people said I was thin and had big ears and that I would never become a beauty queen because of these. But I proved them wrong because I was determined to become one,” she says.

She adds that determination paired with good nutrition would make one excel in any field he or she would embark on.

“I am not beautiful and I am not tall – I only stand 5’51/2” -- but I won in the contest because of my determination and the good nutrition that my parents have taught me,” Quigaman says during a press conference.

The LSG team has been doing the rounds of visits in all schools in the country to talk about proper nutrition, which Dr. Elinor T. Roquel said is the main goal of a child’s health.

Dr. Roquel, an advocacy consultant of MD Essentials Integrated, said good nutrition is the first thing that should be taught to children in order for them to achieve their dreams.

“Parents should know the proper nutrition that they should give to their children, which the LSG Nutrition Education Advocacy hopes to fulfill,” she says.

At least 17 LSG teams are simultaneously doing the nutrition campaign in different schools in the country on school days.

In North Mindanao alone, Dr. Roquel said the team has so far visited 167 schools from June 2010 to January 25, 2011.

Included in the campaign are storytelling and game sessions with the students while their parents attend lectures conducted by a nutritionist on how to make the right food choices for their families without stretching their budget, ensuring that basic nutrients are made part of their children's daily diet through, among other things, milk-drinking.

During sessions, teachers are also encouraged to reinforce the health concept of “Go, Grow and Glow” food, detect cases of malnutrition among their students and instill in the parents the importance of their children being healthy so they can study well and participate in school activities.

Dr. Roquel said parents can prepare lots of food that are inexpensive yet nutritious.

“We have different styles in preparing nutritious food. We only need to be creative. Kung ang nanay wise, maraming paraan para makapagbibigay ng wastong nutrisyon na hindi mahal,” she says.

She adds that people need not be rich for them to make and try on nutritious food.

“Don’t say we are poor. We only lack choices,” Dr. Roquel says.

During the LSG’s visit last year, Dr. Roquel said the program never aims to promote Bear Brand, the Nestlé brand that the campaign carries. Rather, the campaign hopes to instill in the students the habit of drinking milk.

The LSG Nutrition Education Advocacy was launched in 2006 in an effort of Nestlé Philippines to help lessen the increasing trend of malnutrition among children.

According to the 6th National Nutrition Survey conducted by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute, malnutrition continues to be a persistent problem in the Philippines, especially among children five years old and younger.

According to the survey, four out of 10 children under five years old lack Vitamin A, four out of 10 children aged six to 10 lack iron while one out of 10 children under 12 years old lack zinc.

The survey showed that malnutrition manifests in as much as 40 percent of children being underweight and over 60 percent below their proper height levels among those belonging to the lower D and E socioeconomic classes, where the deficiencies are most notable because of poor food choices and inadequate or total absence of milk intake.

Through the LSG program, Nestlé is able to target an environment where both teachers and parents can also learn about proper nutrition habits and be encouraged to promote them to their children.

The program has reportedly grown to become an annual multi-pronged advocacy, which prioritizes the areas with low milk per capita consumption.

The LSG program has visited more than 3,500 schools across the country and reached out to more than two million school children, more than one million mothers and 67,000 teachers.

The LSG has already visited 150 schools, reached out to 40,506 kids and 23,865 mothers in Cagayan de Oro City.

Encouraged by the program's success, Nestlé has plans of making the LSG program even bigger by reaching out to more schools across the country and enhance the activities it offers to spread even wider its message of better nutrition and better education.