Policies Aimed at Health-related Causes of Undernutrition

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Policies Aimed at Health-related Causes of
Undernutrition

• Text extracted from
• The World Food Problem
• Leathers Foster, 2004

http//www.lastfirst.net/images/product/R004548.jp
g
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Director General of World Health Organization,
1989

• If we could increase the health spending in the
  developing countries by only 2 per head,
• we could immunize all their children,
• eradicate polio, and provide the drugs to cure
  all their causes of diarrheal disease,
• acute respiratory infection, tuberculosis,
  malaria, schistosomiasis
• and sexually transmitted diseases.

http//www.who.sk/obr/nakajima.jpg
Hiroshi Nakajima
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Policies promoting low cost health for the poor

• Good health promotes good nutrition
• Good nutrition promotes good health
• Cheaper to maintain good health
• Than to try to cure sick people
• Low cost health for poor
• Barefoot doctors in China
• Nutrition huts in Philppines
• Health huts in Haiti

http//www.chinatoday.com.cn/English/20021/1960nia
n.htm
Barefoot Doctors, China
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U.S. Public Health Policies

• 1840s modern sewage systems
• 1900s Drinking water
• 1923 Salt fortified
• Iodine
• 1940 Flour fortified
• Iron
• Thiamin
• Riboflavin
• Niacin

http//www.ames.lib.ia.us/farwell/publication/Pub6
940.htm
Marston Water Tower, 1897
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Subsidizing Maternal and Child Health Services

• 1974 less than 5 children in developing world
  immunized against
• Measles
• Tetanus
• Diphtheria
• Pertussis
• Tuberculosis
• Polio
• Today 80 immunized due to government policies
• Ex World Health Organization
• 36 million infants/yr not immunized

http//maconareaonline.com/news.asp?id14271
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Maternal and Child Health Centers

• Immunization
• Including hepatitis B, yellow fever
• Vitamin distribution
• Vitamin A pills cost 5 cents to make
• Monitor Child Development
• Oral Rehydration Therapy
• Promote Breast Feeding
• Nutrition Education
• Family Planning

http//www.new-agri.co.uk/image/043/dev01b.jpg
Maternal Health Center, Malawi
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Problems with Baby Formula

• Water supply contaminated with human excrement
• Household hygiene poor
• Flies
• Feces
• No refrigerator
• Wood stove, little fuel
• No equipment to clean bottle
• Uneducated mother
• No knowledge of germs

http//www.emag.uni-bremen.de/emag/2004/projects/w
terprob/my20home.html
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Public Water Case Study

• Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 1976
• 50 of municipal water supply leaked out
• Few shut off valves
• Little incentive to conserve
• Direct service to 150,000 relatively wealthy
• 400,000 poor supposed to use 27 public stand
  pipes

http//www.paho.org/English/DPI/100/100feature25_p
hotos.htm
Public Water Pump, Port-au-Prince
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Public Water Case Study

• Extreme water scarcity solutions
• 40,000 people relied on leaks in pipes
• 95,000 more wealthy people shared with neighbors
• 300,000 bought water through private vendors

http//www.ehponline.org/docs/1994/102-12/focus1.h
tml
Port-au-Prince
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Public Water Case Study

• Private Water Market
• Tanker trucks
• Filled up free at hydrants
• 2,000 connected households
• sold water to neighbors
• 14,000 people were mobile vendors
• Bought water from connected households
• Delivered to customers
• 2 cents a bucket

http//www.wehaitians.com/haitian20suffering.html
Port-au-Prince
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Public Water Case Study

• Private Water Market
• Customers paid out 3.8 million/year
• Municipal Water Authority earned 650,000/yr
• Family of 5 would pay 4/month for 11 litres/day
• 40 of families earned 20/month or less
• Poorest purchased water only for drinking
• Bathed in surface runoff

http//www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/geogr
aphical/fossez.asp
Port-au-Prince