The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has donated therapeutic diets to lactating and expectant mothers (pregnant women), as part of its efforts to fight malnutrition in Bayelsa State.
The international humanitarian agency had recently drawn the attention of the state government to issues concerning exclusive breastfeeding and child nutrition in the state.
Making the donations at the Primary Health Centre, Sagbama Town, headquarters of the Sagbama Local Government Area, Head, UNICEF Port, stated that the essence of the donations was to ameliorate the impact of the shortage of adequate nutrition for children in the area.
The UNICEF team was accompanied on the trip to Sagbama by officials from the state Ministry of Health and select journalists. The visit and donation came just as UNICEF said that data from its research and partners showed that Sagbama LGA was among the worst hit councils by the 2022 ravaging floods which destroyed farm lands and other sources of staple foods, leading to high rate of malnourished children in the area.
Therapeutic diets are usually a modification of regular diets and in administering therapeutic diets, modifications are done in nutrients, texture as well as food allergies and food intolerance.