Keeping our children healthy

Our Ministry of Health has been putting more attention on children’s health and childhood obesity recently. Several measures have been taken to help raise awareness and keep our young generation away from obesity.

According to Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, students’ body mass index (BMI) will be listed in their report cards while unhealthy food will be banned in school canteens effective immediately.

"By listing students' BMI on their report cards, parents have the means to know whether their child's weight is ideal, overweight or obese," he told reporters, adding that parents could obtain advice from clinics on how to maintain a healthy weight for their children.

BMI will not be something new and foreign to parents or students in the future. In the past, the students’ body weight and height are only recorded in the report card for reference purposes. Parents get to know that their children are growing, taller and putting on weight as they grow. However, there’s no indication as to whether the growth, especially in weight, is a healthy one. When the new measure is implemented, parents will not only be aware of their children’s academic performance, but also their health.

He said Malaysia was currently ranked sixth amongst Asian countries and first in Southeast Asia for a high percentage of obese citizens.

"30% of Malaysians are overweight, while another 30% are obese. That's 60%," he said, adding that ministry data estimated around 1.7 million Malaysians aged 18 and above to be obese.

Liow said the move to list BMI in report cards was decided at the Cabinet Committee on Non-communicable Diseases chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on April 4.

"We have identified unhealthy canteen food such as soft drinks and others with high sugar content. These types of food are now banned from being sold," he said.In the meantime, The Health Ministry is also looking into introducing nutritional content labels on some food items sold in canteens in schools. Liow said the labels would show details such as calories, carbohydrates, proteins and fat content.

“They (canteen operators) will need additional knowledge and it will involve extra work to put in all the labels. We will do it slowly but surely,” he said.

In Malaysia, food is plentiful, palatable, easily available and well promoted. In addition to technologies, students are spending their free time sitting in front of the TV or computer instead of playing and chasing around like what kids in the past did. The unhealthy food consumption pattern and sedentary lifestyle has set a trend of rising BMI among students.