Special Snack break and Nutritious diet to tackling malnutrition in Delhi Schools

Last Updated: 10 March 2024

Nov 2022: Education Department's survey identified 4+ lakh students in Delhi Government Schools in the "red zone" which is a marker of suspected malnourishment[1]

A 'mini snack break' or a 10 minute break introduced in schools to encourage consumption of nutritious food[1:1]

IMPACT in Nov 2023[1:2]: 68.3% students reported 5+ kg increase and 43.4% of the students had a height increase of 15+ cm after 1 year of implementation

Impact Details[1:3]

  • A year later, DoE reported weight & height increase
  • More awareness amongst students and care givers towards the importance of nutritive meals
  • Increased focus, physical activity and comprehenshion observed among students
  • Better school attendance of students identified in the red zone

Survey Details[2]

  • Students in the red zone: 4,08,033
  • Age group: 10 - 17 years
  • Data Analysis by: World health Organisation's Antrapous Software
  • Project Partner: Ladli Foundation

Intervention strategies used [3]

3 core components of the programme[4]
-- Education/Awareness
-- Monitoring and
-- Counseling

2nd phase: Industry collaboration with 'Tata 1mg' to conduct blood tests and nutritional assessment of students to diagnose health issues like anemia in students and provide remedial treatment[1:4]

  • Education/Awareness Drive: Organisation of a Mega Counselling Camp on 6 May 2023 to educate students, teachers and parents about well balanced,budget friendly nutritive meals from locally available foods[3:1]
  • Weekly Meal Planner: Schools designed included healthy snacks for students in consultation with nutrition experts[5]
  • Monitoring: Maintenance of records of height & weight of students for accurate growth monitoring
  • High Nutrient Foods Introduction of new dishes with high nutritive value in the mid day meals[2:1]

REFERENCES:

  1. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/105486363.cms ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎ ↩︎

  2. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/doe-identifies-4-lakh-students-in-govt-schools-to-fix-nutrition-gap/articleshow/97627708.cms ↩︎ ↩︎

  3. https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/delhi/2023/Apr/26/parents-to-be-counselled-to-address-malnutrition-among-school-children-delhi-govt-2569545.html ↩︎ ↩︎

  4. https://ladlifoundation.org/get-involved ↩︎

  5. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/does-camp-to-educate-parents-on-healthy-eating-habits-of-children-in-delhi/articleshow/99773930.cms ↩︎