“Good Nutrition is a foundation of a child’s survival, health, and development”.
What are your insights on this quote?
I agree with the quote above as the nutrients the child receives will serve as a base for their body’s biological processes. It serves as a fuel that will start and maintain the child’s health and development. The first 1000 days is comprised of the prenatal period and the first 2 years of a child’s life. During this time, babies need healthy food, loving relationships, safety and security, time to play, and a healthy environment. It is a crucial time where there’s a significant development on the child’s brain, body, and immune system.
Optimal nutrition in the first 1000 days includes: adequate nutrition of the pregnant and lactating women, exclusive breastfeeding in the first six (6) months with initiation within the first hour of birth, continued breastfeeding up to 2 years and beyond, appropriate complementary feeding starting at 6 months, and nutrition complemented with early childhood care and development interventions. If all of these are implemented, it would yield to optimal growth, higher IQ, better schooling, better health, lower disease risk, increased earning, and reduced child deaths.
Good nutrition for the first 1000 days of a child is absolutely important for them to have a better quality of life. Various issues such as undernutrition, malnutrition, and spread of noncommunicable diseases should be solved during this time period. For nutrition to be enough during the first 1000 days, there should be sufficient maternal nutrition before and during pregnancy and lactation. To achieve this, mothers can be guided with the “Pinggang Pinoy” for the right nutrition, amount, and portion during the 1000 days. The mother should also have enough vitamins and nutrients and intake of iron and folic acid supplements are recommended. Timely checkups to health centers, lying-in clinic, and hospitals should be done during the prenatal period. This should be done at least 8 times during the span of the whole pregnancy to ensure the child’s development, nutritional status, and overall health. This is also to check if there are birth defects and health complications. As much as possible, a pregnant woman should give birth on a licensed facility with licensed midwives, nurses, and physicians to ensure both the baby's and the mother’s safety.
We still have a long way to go to achieve a healthy 1000 days for every child, but there are programs, policies, plans, strategies, protocols, and healthcare professionals that will help us to achieve our goal.
References:
National Nutritional Council (2016). First 1000 Days ni Baby Pahalagahan para sa Malusog na Kinabukasan. https://www.nnc.gov.ph/phocadownloadpap/userupload/elavapie/Final%20ppt%202016%20NM%20-%20First%201000%20days.pdf
Pregnancy Birth & Baby (2019). The First 1000 Days. https://www.pregnancybirthbaby.org.au/the-first-1000 days#:~:text=The%20first%201%2C000%20days%20refers,system%20grows%20and%20develops%20significantly.
Ritemed (2020, August 19). “Ano ang First 1000 Days of Life?”. https://www.ritemed.com.ph/articles/ano-ang-first-1000-days-of-life.