The Kontra Sakit, Kontra Liit Campaign with Ceelin Plus kicked off last year.

This campaign aims to curb growth stunting among Filipino children. The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) conducted a study on the nutritional status of Filipino children in 2011. The results they got are the following:

• 3 in every 10 children ages 0-5 years old are stunted for their age
• among children who are 6-11 months, 16.2 percentage have stunted growth
• stunted growth reaches as high as 33.6% when these children turn a year old

The Philippines has the second highest incidence of stunting in Southeast Asia, with Indonesia at the top spot, according to a United Nations Development Programme study. The high prevalence of growth stunting in the Philippines, placed at 30-39% for chidren under age five has already been a concern with the UN Development Report, back in 2008.

There are two factors main factors to be considered in the incidence of growth stunting among Filipino children:

• malnutrition
• recurrence of illnesses and infections

Underprivileged children in developing countries such as the Philippines have a high prevalence in the incidence of growth stunting than their counterpart at a higher socioeconomic level.

These height deficits in children are related to poverty and other environmental influences (dirty environment, unsafe water, dirty air, too many people in a small space) than to genetic influences in body size, even if there are differences in ethnicity across socioeconomic strata.

It is in this regard that Unilab’s Ceelin Plus launched Kontra Sakit, Kontra Liit campaign. The campaign aims to increase awareness about growth stunting and highlight the importance of strong immunity against illnesses and infections that further contribute to the condition of growth stunting.

Why Ceelin Plus? Ceelin Plus has

• vitamin C that forms part of the body’s natural immune system and stimulates the activities of the antibodies and immune cells.
• ZINC  is needed for the normal delveopmental and maintenance of the immune system.

The preventive supplementation of 10mg/day of zinc increases the immunity against repeated illnesses which has a significant effect on the growth of children less than five years old.

Last year, our youngest daughter got sick for several days. She didn’t go to school for a week. Her fever, though not high, was on and off. She didn’t have much appetite. She was lethargic most of the time.

When we had a check-up, the pediatrician said that she has tonsillitis.

Here are the symptoms of tonsillitis:

• Fever
• Bad breath
• Nasal congestion and runny nose
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Red, swollen tonsils covered completely or in patches by pus
• Difficulty swallowing
• Headache
• Abdominal (belly) pain
• Raw, bleeding patches on the tonsils

These were what we did after she was seen by the doctor:

• we had an appointment with an ENT doctor who used a video otoscope on her. He cleaned her ears too.
• we were prescribed antibiotics for the tonsilitis
• we had blood tests done to rule out dengue fever

If your child (or you) suffer fever for a few days, go see your medical doctor immediately to rule out infections, dengue fever and other complications.

Cool weather is prevailing upon us as evidenced by allergy attacks I hear from people. This means winds, falling leaves, plenty of pollen and dust, hot day weather and cool night weather and stress brought about by Christmas shopping and traffic, LOL on the last part.

If the weather feels a bit cool, it is not really cool compared to other countries. In fact, during days when there thunderstorms and rains are upon us, the children do not really feel cold. They wear their jackets to avoid getting wet by the rains but they are perspiring. I on the other hand, can’t wear north face winter coats for women because the weather is not cool enough. If I do so, I’d sweat buckets.

During allergy season, what are the best ways to avoid getting allergy attacks? Here are some tips:

• Avoid going to gardens and near trees during later morning and early afternoon because of high pollen count.
• Keep windows closed and use air-conditioning if possible.
• Avoid yard work or use a face mask when you have to do these chores.
• Avoid going near freshly cut grass, burning leaves, compost pits, hay and grass.
• Avoid staying long in damp places like basements, laundry rooms and barns.
• Use dehumidifier to clean the air at home.
• Wash and change bedding weekly in hot water.
• Use hypoallergenic pillows and beds
• Wash stuffed toys in hot water regularly.
• Avoid using carpets and rugs on the floor.
• ALWAYS, always bring with you your allergy medication. Yeah, never leave home without it.

When we were younger, we used to call low-grade fever “lagnat laki” though I can’t for sure know what that means.

These days though, fever could mean dengue or probably infection of some sorts.

Before, when a child is brought to a doctor to be checked because he/she has fever, the doctor would usually check for lymph nodes, check the throat, look in the ears and prescribe fever medicine. But now with dengue fever as a year-long sickness, someone, not just children, with fever that lasts for more than two-three days should have his blood tested to check for a possibility of having dengue fever.

When my youngest child had her check-up last week, she was given antibiotics for her tonsillitis and we were instructed that if her fever still persists after two or three doses, we should go back and have her blood checked. I see no problem with that since the doctors and nurses (these nurses wear colorful pastel-colored or Cherokee uniforms) in that hospital are really good with children. I was scared though of the possibility, of the “What if she has dengue fever…?”

Thank God it wasn’t dengue. But the summer rains, it isn’t a surprise if there are people who will have that illness because according to the doctor, they have several dengue cases in that hospital already. Sigh…

If you are a college student who has a great idea on health and wellness that will help transform communities, then Unilab Ideas Positive is for you!

Unilab Ideas Positive believes in the youth’s ideas that will make positive difference to the communities they have in mind. Unilab Ideas Positive is a social marketing clinic and competition that gives the youth a place where they can share innovative and sustainable ideas concerning the health and wellness of their communities of choice. These ideas are given the chance and platform to be a reality.

How can Unilab help the youth make their health and wellness ideas in Unilab Ideas Positive as concrete programs that will help communities?

• 3 day marketing boot camp to learn from experts the current social marketing approaches and relevant case studies
• seed money for the implementation of their program which will run for six months

College students from North Luzon, South Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao can now join 2012 Unilab Ideas Positive. More communities will now benefit from the health and wellness programs the youth have as ideas because fifteen, yes, 15 teams will each be given Php100,000 seed money from Unilab Foundation for the implementation of these social marketing programs. This means a total of Php1.5 million seed money will be for these health and wellness programs.

This is an opportunity to give back to communities and help them be healthier through these health and wellness programs. Healthier people means healthier nation.

Now on its third year, Unilab Ideas Positive gets even better with a focus not only on positive ideas, but also on positive outcomes—creating a difference where it matters, in partnership with the Filipino youth.

We all want a healthier nation, right? Start sharing your idea by visiting www.unilabideaspositive.com

CALLING ALL YOUNG PEOPLE WITH POSITIVE IDEAS aimed to promote health and wellness in their community: UNILAB Ideas Positive is inviting you to join their idea-generating contest on social marketing programs that will address, yes,  health and wellness issues.

Unilab Ideas Positive started last year because of the increase in problems affecting communities regarding hygiene and sanitation, nutrition, disease prevention and intervention, as well as environmental care and protection.

Through the Filipino trait of Bayanihan spirit,  that of working together to achieve a common goal, Unilab knows that these problems can be given solution when two or more teams or organizations work together.

Unilab aims to not just provide these youth groups with the venue for them to make themselves heard but to help them turn thier ideas into reality. The youth groups then are able to be more creative in shaping their ideals and sense of social purpose in looking for solutions with the problems they see regarding health and wellness in their communities.

Unilab Ideas Positive Award:

A seed fund worth PhP100,000 will be awarded to the winning team. This award money will be used for the implementation of the social marketing program for the communities they have chosen. The two runner-up groups will be given PhP75,000 for their programs.

Unilab Ideas Positive 2010 winner:

University of Asia and the Pacific’s (UA&P) Team Biggkas was last year’s winner. Their “farm in the city” concept, a hydroponics gardening program aimed to teach housewives in Barangay San Joaquin in Pasig City to have their own sustainable source of vegetables, was chosen. Last April, the moms were able to harvest lettuce and kangkong.

The local government of Pasig City has expressed a desire to replicate the same program in other barangays.

Unilab Ideas Positive includes these provinces for 2011: Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Bulacan and Rizal.

How to join: continue reading this entry »