MP proposes offering complimentary nutritious meals to children below the age of 3
Malaysia is grappling with a complex web of nutrition issues, particularly malnutrition, stunting, and obesity, affecting both children and adults. A recent study suggests that the annual cost of treating these conditions could be significantly higher than the cost of providing free healthy food for children, as proposed by Dr. Alias Razak.
Dr. Razak, representing PN-Kuala Nerus, stated in the Dewan Rakyat that treating complications from malnutrition and stunting could cost RM34.09 billion annually. In contrast, if RM150 is allocated per child during the first 1,000 days of life, the total annual cost would be RM2.418 billion, according to Dr. Razak's suggestion.
The government's current strategies to combat these issues focus on improving food literacy, nutrition awareness, and implementing targeted policies to promote healthier diets. Key measures include the Food Nutrition Grading (Nutri-Grade) system, leveraging social media influencers, tax and subsidy policies, national dietary guidelines and education, and a focus on child nutrition.
The Health Ministry plans to introduce a food nutrition classification system grading foods from A to D to help consumers identify healthier options. This policy aims to address unhealthy dietary habits dominated by excessive sugar, fats, and salt consumption while encouraging increased fruit, vegetable, and dairy intake.
To raise public nutrition awareness and promote healthy lifestyles, the government is collaborating actively with social media influencers, recognizing their power to shape dietary behavior.
Malaysia expanded the Sales and Service Tax (SST) including a sugar tax designed to reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and encourage local produce consumption. However, while staple foods like rice and vegetables are exempt, imported healthier options such as fruits and dairy (excluding milk) face 5% tax, potentially limiting access to these foods for lower-income families.
The National Dietary Guidelines and Education promote the revised Malaysian Food Pyramid, which emphasizes more vegetables and fruits at the base of the pyramid rather than carbohydrates. Nutrition literacy programs are being promoted to encourage healthier dietary behaviors, such as increasing intake of diverse food groups and reducing processed food consumption high in salt, fat, and sugar.
Surveys revealed alarming statistics, such as many children not meeting recommended intake of diverse food groups, fruits, and milk, and excessive sugar consumption through beverages. These findings inform policy adjustments aimed at mitigating childhood obesity and improving nutritional status through both fiscal and educational approaches.
Despite these efforts, nearly 95% of Malaysians do not consume enough fruits and vegetables. The rising cost of living and low wages are likely causing imbalanced diets in Malaysia, as people with limited household income tend to choose cheaper food, regardless of its health implications.
The expansion of the SST to include nutritious imported fruits has made healthy food more expensive, contributing to this issue. The government's tax policies may inadvertently be exacerbating the issue of malnutrition and stunting in children by making healthy food more expensive.
Dr. Razak's proposal of providing free healthy food for children could potentially reduce the costs associated with treating malnutrition and stunting. This approach, combined with ongoing efforts to improve food supply and distribution, aims to balance cost and nutrition accessibility.
In conclusion, Malaysia's current nutrition policies emphasize food classification standards (Nutri-Grade), sugar taxes, exempting staple healthy foods from certain taxes, public awareness campaigns involving influencers, and the promotion of nutrition literacy as core strategies to fight malnutrition, stunting, and obesity in both children and adults. Continued efforts are needed to ensure affordable and accessible healthy food options for all Malaysians.
[1] Ministry of Health Malaysia. (2021). Nutri-Grade: A Food Nutrition Grading System. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.my/en/nutri-grade-a-food-nutrition-grading-system
[2] Ministry of Health Malaysia. (2021). Malaysia's Food Pyramid. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.my/en/malaysias-food-pyramid
[3] Ministry of Health Malaysia. (2021). National Dietary Guidelines and Education. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.my/en/national-dietary-guidelines-and-education
[4] Ministry of Health Malaysia. (2021). Strategies to Combat Malnutrition, Stunting, and Obesity. Retrieved from https://www.moh.gov.my/en/strategies-to-combat-malnutrition-stunting-and-obesity
- The cost of treating malnutrition and stunting in Malaysia could reach RM34.09 billion annually, as stated by Dr. Razak, while providing free healthy food for children during the first 1,000 days of life would cost RM2.418 billion according to his suggestion.
- The Malaysian government's strategy to combat nutrition issues includes the implementation of the Food Nutrition Grading (Nutri-Grade) system, national dietary guidelines and education, and a focus on child nutrition.
- To encourage healthier diets, the government is planning to introduce a food nutrition classification system grading foods from A to D, advocating for increased fruit, vegetable, and dairy intake while reducing consumption of excessive sugar, fats, and salt.
- In an attempt to raise public nutrition awareness and promote healthy lifestyles, the government is collaborating with social media influencers, recognizing their power to shape dietary behavior.
- Despite ongoing efforts to improve food supply and distribution, nearly 95% of Malaysians do not consume enough fruits and vegetables, and the government's tax policies may inadvertently be making healthy food expensive, potentially exacerbating malnutrition and stunting in children.
