ISLAMABAD: Health experts at a seminar on Monday said malnutrition in Pakistan was becoming a major issue and the government should declare an emergency to address it on a priority basis.

The seminar on ‘the deficiency of vitamins and minerals in food’ was organised by the Ministry of National Health Services in collaboration with a non-governmental organiszation, the Micronutrient Initiative, at a local hotel.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Tausif Akhtar Janjua, a nutritionist, said almost 50 per cent of women and children in the country were suffering from under-nutrition. Because of malnutrition, 47 per cent efficiency of the children would be affected in future. He said an acute malnutrition meant a child would not gain the average weight and height according to his age. Almost 44 per cent children in the country are stunted, he said.

“Pakistan is an agricultural country with a rapidly growing population of approximately 179 million. The high growing population demands more production. The country’s annual population growth rate is estimated to be 1.97 per cent. Though 61.45 per cent of the total population live in rural areas and depend on agriculture, the growth of agriculture is lower than that of the population.”

He said wheat was the single most important source of food calories in Pakistan but the milling caused degradation of iron contents in the flour due to which people failed to get the average iron as per the dietary requirements. Moreover, there is a deficiency of Vitamin A, folic acid, iodine and zinc in people, especially women and children.

Dr Janjua recommended that a fortification of minerals and vitamins should be done in wheat to ensure that the consumers got all the minerals and vitamins. He also recommended that legislation should be done to ensure the benefit of fortified flour reached the doorsteps of the poorest and vulnerable groups.

Health experts say malnutrition has become a major issue in Pakistan

Dr Baseer Khan Achakzai, the director nutrition at the ministry of health, said the current situation of nutrition was not good all over the country.

“There is the deficiency of iron and folic acid in people, so a large-scale fortification with essential vitamin and minerals in wheat flour, edible oil and ghee is needed.”

He said the government was committed to making necessary amendments to the legislation and a technical working group would be formed under the National Fortification Alliance to develop a national plan of action.

Prof Tahir Zahoor of the National Institute of Food Sciences and Technology (NIFSAT), Faisalabad, said if vitamins and minerals were included in edible items people would not need to use medicines.

He said NIFSAT was providing technical support to industrialists to include minerals and vitamins in oil and other products made with wheat such as cereals.

Prof Aamir Shahzad of NIFSAT said every second pregnant woman and 40 per cent pre-school children were estimated to be anemic because almost 60 to 80 per cent nutrition in wheat was lost during milling.

“Only Rs5 are required to add different minerals and vitamins to the 20 kilogramme flour bag to end the deficiency of minerals and vitamins in food,” he said.

Dr Tausif Akhtar Janjua later told Dawn that because of malnutrition and deficiency of minerals and vitamins 44 per cent of the new generation would not be able to contribute to the development of the country.

“The deficiency of iodine severely affects the intelligence and quickness (IQ) level of children. A child who gets less iodine loses the ability to learn by 17 per cent and as a result he leaves the school and becomes an unproductive individual in society.”

He said the government gives attention to dengue, polio, electricity loadshedding but never seriously took the deficiency of minerals and vitamins.

“Unfortunately, by ignoring the health sector, we are almost at the same stage where we were 60 years ago. In some areas, we have even gone down,” he regretted.

Published in Dawn December 16th , 2014