Backyard gardening key to children eating vegetables

THE Department of Education (DepEd) in Mandaue is encouraging parents to cultivate vegetables in their backyards to encourage their children to eat nutritious food instead of processed food.

“Eating healthy food does not necessarily have to be expensive,” said Mandaue City DepEd Division administrative officer Benjamin Tiongson.

“The nutrients needed by our bodies can also be found in backyard vegetables like malunggay, camote, alugbati, kangkong, onion, ginger and a lot more,” he said.

If families don’t have space for a garden at home, Tiongson advised that parents could use containers or pots to grow vegetables and also encourage their children to help.

The presence of a garden will make the younger generation see the importance of eating vegetables grown naturally without chemical insecticides.

“We should avoid eating excessive amounts of fatty food and those with preservatives since these might contain carcinogenic substances,” he said.

Nutrition Month activities in Mandaue City include a poster making contest and jingle making contest participated by the 49 public schools of the DepEd Division.