Rising food prices due to the rapid inflation may cause more families to experience hunger, an official of the National Nutrition Council (NNC) said.

“Talagang problema iyan ng mga pamilya ngayon…Kung patuloy na nagiging mahal ang mga pagkain, ang bilihin–patuloy na dadami ang mga pamilyang makakaranas ng gutom (That's really a problem for families currently… If food and other goods continue to become expensive– the number of families that will experience hunger will continue to increase),” said NNC’s Nutrition Information and Education Division Chief Jovita Raval on Friday, July 15.

This may also lead to poor nutrition in families, especially among children, said Raval.

“Ang nagiging epekto niyan ay yung malnutrition at lalong epektado diyan yung mga bata---kaya nagkakaroon tayo ng mga underweight o wasted na mga bata o yung mga payat na payat (The effect of that is malnutrition, especially among children. There are those who are underweight or wasted children or those who are very thin),” she said.

“ kung nagkasakit pa sila, ay talagang sobrang bagsak na ng kanilang timbang at maari na nilang ikamatay ito (if they get sick, and if they really have a low weight, they could die),” she added.

More than three million families have experienced hunger during the first few months of this year amid the Covid-19 pandemic, according to recent hunger incidence surveys, said Raval.

“Base doon sa pinakahuling datos, halos 3.1 milyong pamilya ang nakaranas ng kagutuman nitong mga naunang buwan ng 2022. So ibig sabihin nun, patuloy pa rin ang naging impact ng pandemya (Based on the latest data, almost 3.1 million families experienced hunger in the first months of 2022. Meaning, the impact of the pandemic continues),” she said.

Raval urged Filipino families to prioritize buying food over vices.

“Pinapayuhan natin ang mga pamilya na prioritize pa rin ang mga pagkain over ibang bagay. Halimbawa imbes na manigarilyo o uminom ng alak, ibili nalang ito sa pagkain, at saka magtanim din (We advise families to still prioritize food over other things. For example, instead of smoking or drinking alcohol, just buy food. You can also do planting),” she said.

There are kinds of food that are still affordable such as vegetables, said Raval.

“May mga pagkain pa rin naman na hindi ganun kamahal pero hindi natin masyadong pinapansin. So nandyan ang mga madadahong berdeng gulay (There are still some kinds of food that are not that expensive but we don't pay much attention to them such as green leafy vegetables),” she said.

“Piliin din natin yung mga butong gulay--yung mga monggo, beans. Huwang pong matakot na rarayumahin. Hindi po ganun kataas ang epekto niyan sa uric acid. So, isa yan na murang source ng pagkain na mataas sa protina. Then of course ang itlog, siksik sa sustansya (Let's also choose vegetable beans such as monggo beans. Don't be afraid that it may cause rheumatism. The effect of that on uric acid is not that high. It’s a cheap source of food that is high in protein. Then of course the egg which is rich in nutrients),” she said.

Raval also said that the government should further coordinate with the agricultural sector and provide more livelihood and employment programs to fight hunger incidence.