HAVANA, July 25 (Juan Carlos Linares, Cuba Voz) - A survey taken by Ministry
of Public Health personnel between April and May of this year shows that more
than 30% of the children in the Havana municipality of Diez de Octubre are
malnourished and have not reached the size and weight considered standard for
their age.
One physician working in the district said that, from the beginning,
Ministry officials let it be known that the survey results should be handled
discretely "to prevent the results from being manipulated by the enemy."
The doctor said the survey was taken primarily through the family doctors
and pediatricians in the district.
"As the work progressed, it became evident that the number of children
who were malnourished and under sized could reach 40%. That was talked about
discretely, since the information was supposed to be compartmentalized, and
there wasn't supposed to be any exchange of information between one control zone
and the next," said the doctor who insisted in anonymity.
Another doctor in the municipality said "I'm afraid of reprisals, but
in one school under my supervision more than 30% of the students qualified as
malnourished and under their size and weight. The tables against which the
students were compared are our own. I think if we used the UN tables the
percentage would reach 40."
An expert in nutrition at the Hermanos Ameijeiras hospital, who did not want
to be identified, said the lack of an adequate diet is easily detectable in the
general population. "Protein intake is not even half the daily
requirements, less still if you are talking about pregnant women," he said.
Beyond the known results, there are indications that they might even be
worse than suspected. Some parents report irregularities in recording the data.
"When they measured and weighed my son, he fell in level 3, but the
pediatrician misrecorded his size so that he only showed as under weight,"
said one mother.
The woman said that some doctors fudge the numbers for political reasons,
and others for fear of contradicting the official mantra that "Cuba is a
world power in medicine."
Workers who participated in the survey said children were classified into
three levels, one to three, with one being the most severe. These levels were
followed by other classifications for underweight children.
The government determined it will make available an additional ration to
malnourished children, consisting of some rice, oil, macarroni and split peas. "These
children need a diet rich in protein. Products like eggs, milk, meat or fish,
are absence" , expressed the nutritionist.
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original en español
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