Eradicating Anemia: The Unilever, Nutrition Society of Nigeria kind gesture

A healthy woman is central to a healthy country; it is probably because of this that Nutrition Society of Nigeria (NSN) in conjunction with Unilever Nigeria has come up with a sensitization programme to highlight the dangers that Micro-nutrients and anemia portends for the women folk writes ‘Fisayo Ajibola and Babajide Okeowo. What is Nutrients-deficiencies and Anemia Iron deficiency which leads to Anemia is the most common and widespread nutritional disorder in the world. This is a condition in which the red blood cells or their oxygen-carrying capacity is insufficient to meet physiological needs of the body. The symptoms of anemic condition includes, fatigue, dizziness, weakness, drowsiness, shortages of breath and all these militate against active living and human productivity as iron is critical to learning process and energy for day to day activities. As well as affecting a large number of children and women in developing countries, it is the only nutrient deficiency which is also significantly prevalent in Industralized Countries. This deficiency affects more people than any other condition, constituting a public health condition of epidemic proportions. More subtle in its manifestations than, for example, protein-energy malnutrition, iron deficiency exacts its heaviest overall toll in terms of ill-health, premature death and lost earnings. Iron deficiency and Anemia reduce the work capacity of individuals and entire populations, bringing serious economic consequences and obstacles to national development. If you think this is scary, wait for this. Nigeria faces one of the largest burdens of micro-nutrient deficiencies with anemia the most common with a big impact on health of women and children, specifically, 49 per cent of women of reproductive age have anemia, 24.3 per cent have low iron stores and 12.7 per cent of them are iron deficient. These figures indicate that majority of the adolescent girls and women did not meet the iron requirements of 20 milligrams per day as recommended by the Food and Agricultural Organisation and the World Health Organisation. The above is the summation of The Nutrition Society of Nigeria. This is however raised serious concerns among relevant stakeholders led by the Nutrition Society of Nigeria, NSN, who said that iron is one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies globally, with almost one of every two women of reproductive age being anemic in Nigeria. Unilever to the rescue With the danger that mico-nutrients deficiencies and anemia portends to the society, leading manufacturer of leading brands in foods, home care and personal care, Unilever Nigeria has taken up the gauntlet by sensitizing the public on this menace through the organization of a seminar to tackle the dangers anemia portends. http://perfectbrandsng.com/eradicating-anemia-the-unilever-nutrition-society-of-nigeria-kind-gesture/