ONLY 40% OF NIGERIAN CHILDREN HAVE NORMAL NUTRITION

Healthy Kids programme, sponsored by Nestle, is a practical example of creating share value, according to the managing director and chief executive, Mr Martins Woolnough. Speaking at an occasion to flag off the programme and a workshop for primary school teachers in Lagos at the EKO FM main hall on Tuesday, Woolnough said the programme is aim at teaching the benefits of healthy life style to school age children in Nigeria content, giving them the chance to develop positive attitudes and behaviours towards food and exercise to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight into adulthood.

The Nestle MD emphasised the aims of healthy kids teachers workshop was a way of equipping teachers with innovative nutrition education techniques while helping them to improve their own eating practices and making them aware of the behavioural messages they give as role models.

Mrs Iquo Ukoh, a Nestle Director, during the presentation of Healthy Kids, said Nestle intervention is timely as a recent research by the company showed that only 40% of Nigerian children have normal nutritional status while 23% have good knowledge about nutrition despite nutrition teaching in schools. She said 44% have mild/moderate obesity while 16% are malnourished.

Iquo advised parents to create time for their children by providing healthy diet for them and not just giving them money which the children will only use to buy junk which cannot guarantee their health. She said parents should endeavour to build the children to a healthy adulthood who will in-turn take care of them at old age.

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