“Good Nutrition is a foundation of a child’s survival, health, and development”
Indeed, supplying an adequate nutrition among the children helps improve their overall growth and development. Unfortunately, there are still women from the current world's population who are still not yet well-informed of the lifelong consequences of malnutrition and its impact towards the development of the child on each aspect. Some women do not even know nor do not even value the importance of maternal nutrition and prenatal care towards the development of their baby. As stated by World Bank (2021), undernutrition has always been a continuous and consistent problem in the Philippines that it is still widespread in the country for nearly thirty years. To be specific, it had affected infants that are six to 11 months old, children of 12-23 months, and pregnant women.
As such, it is important that good nutrition should be established from the start of a woman's motherhood. For instance, having a routine prenatal checkup offers not only the discovering of the risks of possible health complications that both the mother and child may develop in the future, but also different possible nursing interventions that may be implemented to ensure the maternal health and nutrition.
To further improve the maternal and child health and nutrition, the passing of the First 1,000 Days Law in the Philippines would help address the maternal, neonatal, and child health and nutrition issues. This helps ensure the healthy growth and development from infancy to childhood stage. The law would also help address the problem regarding the country's malnutrition. As stated by DOH (2018), malnutrition has already caused stunted on approximately 4.2 million children and wasted on more than 300,000 children under 5 years old. Failing to resolve the aforementioned issues may severely affect the child's cognitive and intellectual capacities on a lifetime.
References:
Department of Health. (2018, December 29). First 1,000 Days Law - The Best Christmas Gift Of Duterte Administration To Filipino Mothers And Their Children. https://doh.gov.ph/node/16268
1,000 Days. (n.d.). The Power of the First 1,000 Days. https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/1*wFJT_ciMjtrXnVqpGEHh1A.jpeg
World Bank. (2021, June 15). Undernutrition in the Philippines: Scale, Scope, and Opportunities for Nutrition Policy and Programming. https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/philippines/publication/-key-findings-undernutrition-in-the-philippines