Infant Mortality: Nestlé trains over 100 healthcare professionals
NAN-HG-3
Infants
By Vivian Ihechu
Lagos, July 4, 2017 (NAN) The Nestlé Nutrition Institute Africa (NNIA) has trained more than 100 relevant Nigeria’s healthcare professionals on capacity building to strengthen them to promote maternal and infant health.
The training workshop, which took place on Tuesday in Lagos, had its theme as: “Nutrition in the 1st 1,000 Days and Later Health Outcomes’’.
It was organised by NNIA in collaboration with the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives, Lagos State chapter; Nutrition Society of Nigeria, and Dietetic Association of Nigeria.
The NNIA’s Board Chairman, Prof. James Renner, said that an important target of the training was to help reduce infant mortality in line with Target 5b of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to him, the programme also seeks to reduce the rate of infant mortality linked to poor nutrition.
“The Nestle Nutrition Institute Africa is committed to the training of Health Care Professionals (HCPs).
“This is based on the belief that HCPs play significant role in the advancement of maternal, new-born and child health; they occupy a critical position as nutrition and health counsellors.
“Given the rapid advancements in the field of nutrition and its relevance to paediatric health, it is imperative for HCPs to be kept abreast with global trends and best practices in the profession.
“This workshop is positioned to tap into the window of opportunity that exists in the 1st 1,000 days of life through right nutrition,’’ he said.
Renner, also a Professor of Paediatrics, Babcock University Teaching Hospital, in his keynote address, said that protein was a very important nutrient from the period of infancy to later life.
“Protein intake should neither be too little nor too much, but be optimised for maximum benefit.
“Excessive intake of protein has been linked to non-communicable diseases later in life, while inadequate protein intake predisposes the individual to infections, growth disorders and other health challenges,’’ Renner said.
Mrs Chioma Emma-Nwachukwu, the NNIA’s Manager, said: “The period of infancy is a very important one in the life cycle of every individual because it is typically characterised by rapid growth.
“The bones, muscles and other organs that support life and health in later years are formed during this stage of life; therefore, a high level of attention is required at this critical phase.’’
She added that: “The importance of constantly building the nutrition capabilities of HCPs especially the paramedics cannot be over emphasised.
“They are constantly saddled with the task of making nutrition decisions, therefore, empowering them with the right knowledge would enable them act rightly, when dispatching their duties,’’ Emma-Nwachukwu said.
According to Nestle, it is estimated that neonatal mortality stands at 37.4 per 1,000 live births while under-five mortality is at 117.4 for every 1,000 live births in Nigeria.
These figures have placed Nigeria as the second ranking nation with the worst child mortality indices in the world.
Nestlé Nutrition Institute Africa is an institute that shares leading science-based information and education with HCPs.
It is founded on the principle that good nutrition begins before birth, continues through the lifecycle and is nurtured by the knowledge and consumption of a nutritionally adequate and appropriate diet.
It aims for a future across the African continent where individuals are nourished, healthier and live longer lives.
NNIA has been training healthcare professionals in collaboration with professional associations as a way of supporting the government’s efforts in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Similar workshops for HCPs have taken place in Abeokuta, Kano, Abuja, Owerri, Ilorin and Port Harcourt. (NAN)
VIV/AOM/MST
Edited by Abdullahi Mohammed/Muhammad Suleiman Tola