Ready to use therapeutic meals.

Young mothers in the village of Nazambi had it tough, there struggled with catering for their kids and ensuring their safety. 

Halima a mother of twins was not getting by as she had no support from the babies father in Caring for them. She was saddened as she watched her babies slowly regenerate from lack of proper nutrition. She hoped a better way would provide it self so she could feed and nourish the kids back to solid health. 

The village got visitors early this month, health workers who had heard about the devastating state of affairs in the village had bounded together to profer solutions to the rising state of malnutrition. 

They came with care packages of  ready to use Therapeutic meals rich in nutrients that would augment the nutrients lacking in a malnourished child. Through their eye-opening sessions and awareness segments, these young mothers learned better ways to care for their babies and were given months worth of therapeutic food.  This was to go a long way in saving lives of these children. 

Halima was pleased with this development and Availed herself for all the classes and she was able to secure six months worth of the care packages and she learned ways to produce such nutrients packed meals from the little she could afford. 

She learned that:

Ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) are energy- dense, micro nutrient enhanced pastes used in therapeutic feeding. These meals are aimed at rehabilitation of kids between the ages of six months and five years. These kids suffer from acute malnutrition and are at a high risk of death.

UNICEF and WHO proffered these highly nutritious substitutes for wholesome meals that was unavailable in rural and among struggling families.

These meals could be prepared at home, as long as the ratio of nutrients that qualify it as a therapeutic food supplement is present.

 There are four basic ingredients in RUTF:

Sugar

Dried Skimmed Milk

Oil

Vitamin and Mineral Supplement (CMV)

In addition, up to 25% of a product’s weight can come from oil-seeds, groundnuts or cereals like oats.

Aswell as containing the necessary proteins, energy and micro nutrients,  she was taught that RUTF should also have the following attributes:

Taste and texture suitable for young children

No need for cooking before consumption

Resistant to contamination by micro-organisms and long shelf-life without sophisticated packaging. Product should be oil-based. 

RUTF is most times  made according to a standard, energy‐rich composition defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), But ingredients vary depending on local availability, cost and acceptability by the child’s body system.

 Benefits of RUTF include a long shelf life without refrigeration and they require zero to minute preparation. This way mothers can customize the meal according to available resources within their homes and also save cost of hospital treatments. Hence saving their children through simple measures. 

The introduction of therapeutic meal has seen a decline in the rates at which children die from malnutrition and has helped mothers take better care of their children health, Saving them from infections and other illnesses they were prone to.