Season of Sharing: Dietitian explains how malnutrition affects children
When school feeding programmes stop during the holidays, what happens to the children who rely on them for their daily meals?
Carol Ofori invited registered Paediatric Dietitian Megan Marshall into the studio to discuss the importance of regular meals for children.
East Coast Radio's Season of Sharing campaign aims to support children across KwaZulu-Natal who rely on their school feeding programmes for daily meals throughout the year. In partnership with Pick 'n Pay, the aim is to collect food hampers and donations in support of these children and many families who will be left without meals this festive season.
When schools close in December, around 2.3 million children will be left without a regular meal.
Marshall has worked in the United Kingdom and in some of South Africa's largest paediatric hospitals.
Carol asked Marshall what impact not having a regular meal during these six weeks is likely to have on the children.
"Hunger is going to have a massive negative effect on their little bodies and their brains," says Marshall.
She says it takes a few hours without food to cause a child to react with less energy, less focus, and withdraw from play. These are some of the short-term effects of not having any food. When children lack access to food for a couple of days, malnutrition begins.
Marshall took into consideration that some of these children might already be malnourished.
How does malnutrition affect a child?
Going further down the line of malnutrition, we can expect to see a spiral where these children will experience adverse effects on their immunity and slow growth and development.
When they go back to school, we've got that child who's getting sick more often, and they're gonna struggle with learning once they're back at school, and that's their last potential.
Marshall also explains what eating regularly does for a child's physical and mental wellbeing.
Without the proper nutrition, children struggle to focus, concentrate and excel in their studies and day-to-day activities.
Listen to the full interview below:
If you would like to get in touch with Megan Marshall for advice, you can contact her on TeenTummies.com
She is located at The Atrium Lifestyle Centre, 10 Old Main Road, Gillitts, 3610, Durban, KZN, South Africa
If you’d like to help us spread love this festive season, join the East Coast Radio Telethon on Friday, 7 November, and pledge your support with a donation.
Call 087 087 9495 to be part of the Season of Sharing Telethon.
HOW TO LISTEN TO EAST COAST RADIO
- Listen to East Coast Radio on the FM (frequency modulation) spectrum between 94 and 95 FM on your radio.
- Listen live to ECR by clicking here or download the ECR App (iOS/Android).
- Listen to East Coast Radio on the DStv audio bouquet, channel 836.
- Switch to the audio bouquet on your Openview decoder and browse to channel 606
- Listen to us on Amazon Alexa.
Follow us on social media:
Image Supplied by Julian Carelsen