The National Nutrition Council-6 (NNC-6) here is encouraging the general public to maintain vegetable gardens for healthy lifestyle.
Dr. Anthony Redaniel of NNC-6 said their campaign will help increase the consumption of vegetables that had been declining for the past years due to foreign food products in the market.
He said by planting and eating vegetables, they support local vegetable farmers at the same time promote healthy diet and long life.
“Vegetable consumption among Filipinos remains low at 110 g/capita per year from year 1978 to 2008,” he said during a recent press conference in relation to Nutrition Month Celebration next month with the theme: “Pagkain ng gulay ugaliin, araw-araw itong ihain”.
Redaniel said some reasons of poor intake of vegetables are influence of family members who do not eat vegetables, taste, price, difficult preparation, wrong cultural beliefs, preference for meat than vegetables, preference for fast foods and instant foods and lack of knowledge on nutritional and health benefits of vegetables.
He said during their advocacy, they also emphasized the importance of vegetables as main sources of vitamins and minerals, and prevention as well as control of cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Meanwhile, the NNC-6 is also promoting breastfeeding during the first six months of the infants up to two years old because of the health benefits they could get from it.
He added breastfeeding practice helps ease the tension for both mother and baby because of complete, balance, safe and clean nutrients content, apart from prolonged risk of getting pregnant again.
Redaniel said breastfed children are less prone to death-threatening illnesses unlike those formula milks.
