Parasitic worms in children alarm authorities
One out of two Cebuanos play host bodies to parasitic worms.
That’s according to a 2007 study conducted by the University of the Philippines National Institute of Health (NIH).
Dr. Vicente Belizario Jr., who met with officials from both city and provincial governments yesterday morning, said the high occurrence of the worms otherwise referred to as “helminths” is “no longer acceptable.”
The rate is way past the World Health Organization’s (WHO) standards which stand at one out of five persons.
Also in attendance were Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, provincial health office (IPHO) officer Cynthia Genesolango, Provincial Board (PB) member Peter John Calderon and Cebu city councilors heading the committees on Health and Education, Lea Japson and Noel Wenceslao, respectively.
According to Belizario, nine out of ten children in sitio Alaska, barangay Mambaling are worm-infested.
Article continues after this advertisement“This is an often neglected disease, experts call it a disease of poor people due to improper sanitation and open defecation,” he said.
Article continues after this advertisement“Children diagnosed with parasitic worms often perform poorly in school. The abdominal pain caused by the organisms led to absenteeism,” he added.
The Department of Health (DOH), he said, will start the distribution of candy-flavored chewable tablets to elementary and high school students of Cebu City, next month for free.
According to Belizario, DOH’s program dubbed War On Worms (WOW) sees Cebu as a model of worm control in the country together with other focus areas set by the NIH.
He said DOH has yet to gather data on the occurrence of parasitic worms in the whole province of Cebu.
“That’s what we need to establish, the baseline data for us to know the timetable of this program,” he told reporters.
Magpale said the provincial government is ready to provide manpower for the distribution of the tablets.
“We always conduct feeding programs but the kids are still malnourished, there must be something wrong,” she said.
The occurrence of parasitic worms can also affect pregnant women and lead to stunted growth in children, said Belizario. /Peter L. Romanillos, Correspondent
