The National Nutrition Council (NNC) on Monday estimated that failure to address malnutrition could cost the Philippines approximately P2.3 trillion in lost productivity by 2030, primarily due to child stunting.

In response, the NNC called for increased support for the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition (PPAN).

According to NNC, about 26.7 percent of children under five years old were found to be stunted in 2021.

“The PPAN targets a reduction in child stunting by to at least 17.9 percent in 2028,” the NNC said.

This translates to a reduction in magnitude of about four million children in 2012 to about two million children by 2028.

“Furthermore, about US$1 billion in productivity losses can be avoided if the country can reduce the prevalence of low birth weight among infants by 30 percent from 2017 levels of 14.5 percent to 10.2 percent in 2025 and continue reduction to 8.6 percent by 2028,” the agency continued.

Malnutrition linked to poor

academic performance

“With continued rates of low birth weight due to inaction, about 5.1 million intelligence quotient (IQ) points are lost per year,” the NNC said.

“This can partly explain why Filipino students do poorly in academic performance compared to other countries,” it added.

Recently, the Programme for International Student Assessment found that 15-year-old Filipino students scored 14 points on average in the newly introduced creative thinking assessment of the 2022 cycle of the benchmarking test.

This placed the Philippines in the bottom four among 64 countries.

The NNC pointed out the link between poor brain development of the baby when the pregnant mother is deprived of the necessary nutrition during pregnancy as well as of optimal nutrition from breastfeeding and appropriate complementary feeding.

Moreover, NNC Executive Director Assistant Secretary Dr. Azucrna Dayanghirang said optimal breastfeeding could prevent as much as 5,000 deaths and 1,400 maternal deaths yearly.

“Breastfeeding should be exclusive in the first six months of life and continue up to two years or more,” Dayanghirang said.

The NNC estimated that about US$360 million is spent annually on breastmilk substitutes by families, which it noted “can best be used to improve food intake of the entire family if the mother breastfeeds her baby.”

"By placing nutrition at the forefront of our national agenda, we can ensure that it receives the attention and resources it deserves for comprehensive and sustainable improvements in nutrition outcomes," Dayanghirang added.

PPAN campaign

The UNICEF also called on the government, stakeholders, communities, and businesses to support the PPAN campaign.

"Every child has the right to proper nutrition. When children are well-nourished, they can better learn, play, and engage in their communities, while also being more resilient in the face of illness and crises,” UNICEF Philippines Representative Oyunsaikhan Dendevnorov said.

“Good nutrition is a fundamental driver of development and is essential for nation-building," Dendevnorov added.

Aligned with international commitments such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the World Health Assembly targets, the PPAN 2023-2028 provides a comprehensive framework for improving the nutritional situation in the Philippines.

The Nutrition Month this July campaigns for more support for the PPAN as guided by the theme “Sa PPAN: Sama-Sama Para sa Nutrisyong Sapat Para sa Lahat!” (Through PPAN, let’s collaborate on nutrition security for all!).