PUBLIC schools in the city should be reminded to implement the ban on the sale, distribution and bringing of junk food and carbonated drinks in their canteens for the prevention of kidney diseases among the youth.
The City Council, for its part, should consider adopting a measure that would enforce the prohibition on the sale of salty food, fatty good and colored drinks not only within but also around the school premises.
These were the recommendations made by the city council research division under local legislative staff officer V Dan Ricky Ong in a report submitted to Vice Mayor Edison Bilog on January 4.
The report was based on the legislative monitoring and evaluation done on city council Resolution no. 56 series of 2013, which requests the Department of Health and the Health Services Office to come up with an information dissemination campaign on the common cause and prevention of kidney diseases.
In the report, local legislative staff officer IV Eliza Orduna said schools should be reminded of the Department of Education (DepEd) memorandum 65 series of 2013 reiterating the prohibition on the sale, distribution and bringing of junk good and carbonated drinks in public elementary and secondary school canteens as well as the city council Resolution No. 262 series of 2007 to strictly enforce DepEd memoranda on the sale of junk food which contain formaldehyde in canteens in both private and public schools.
DepEd Department Order No. 8 series of 2007 prohibits the sale of carbonated drinks, sugar- based synthetic or artificially flavoured juices, junk foods and any food product that may be detrimental to the child’s health and that do not bear the Sangkap Pinoy seal or did not pass Bureau of Food and Drugs approval.
During the tracking, city health officer Dr. Rowena Galpo pointed out the need for the city council to approve an ordinance to put more teeth on the DepEd ban on these kidney disease-inducing foods.
Galpo also suggested barangay volunteers should undergo orientation on healthy lifestyle and to standardize the talking points on the common causes and prevention of kidney disease while day care teachers should be trained for the revival of the monthly day care health teachings to parents on proper nutrition.
She said nutrition health workers should also strengthen the promotion of drinking water for health kidneys in their house-to-house visits in the barangays.
DOH-CAR regional director Lakshmi Legaspi for her part recommended renal disease control be incorporated in the non-communicable disease program since its top causes are hypertension and diabetes which are lifestyle-related diseases. (Aileen Refuerzo/PIO)