Nearly 65,000 kindergarten and primary school students throughout the country have been taught about proper nutrition and physical activities through a programme undertaken by the Việt Nam Red Cross Society and FrieslandCampina Việt Nam.

Arnoud van den Berg, managing director of FrieslandCampina Việt Nam, says height development should start with proper nutrition and exercise for children at an early age. Photo Courtesy of FrieslandCampina Việt Nam

The Project on Nutrition Education and Physical Strength Development in Việt Nam’s Children saw the Red Cross organise talks by nutritionists at 100 primary schools and kindergartens.

The talks would end with flash mobs, helping make the whole event fun for the students.

The students were taught the formula for health and comprehensive development: eating three proper meals every day comprising all four groups of essential nutrients, namely carbohydrates, protein, fat, and vitamins; drinking two glasses of milk each day; and engaging in physical activities for one hour.

The Red Cross also invites nutritionists from the National Institute of Nutrition to train the main representatives of its branches in provinces and cities, who then teach teachers at schools in their locality.

More than 250,000 families have benefited from the Project on Nutrition Education and Physical Strength Development in Việt Nam’s Children.

The project has also contributed to achieving important targets in a Government programme titled School Milk-For Việt Nam’s Stature, which aims to improve the nutrition and height of kindergarten and primary students by 2020.

By 2030 Việt Nam hopes to reduce the rate of child malnutrition to below the global and regional averages.

FrieslandCampina Việt Nam this year is collaborating with the Bình Dương Province Health Education and Communication Centre on an education programme on nutrition education and physical development to benefit 10,000 primary school students.

The programme is a part of a campaign called Nutrition-Exercising-Healthy initiated by FrieslandCampina based on the concept of daily diet, nutrition and exercise affecting a child greatly./.

VNF/VNS