To Prevent Stunting, Nutritionists Emphasise Importance of Balanced Menus at Home
A nutritionist from the Tanah Tinggi Community Health Centre (Puskesmas) in Tangerang City, Een Resita, has emphasised that meeting balanced nutritional needs to reduce stunting rates in children must begin within the home environment. This can be achieved through the selection of appropriate food ingredients and regular monitoring of a child’s growth and development by parents.
According to Een, meeting a family’s nutritional needs does not always require expensive costs. Local food ingredients that are easily found in daily life, such as rice, eggs, and vegetables, possess significant nutritional content sufficient to support child growth if processed correctly.
“Many local menus are easily accessible to parents for their children and possess high nutrition, such as rice, eggs, and vegetables,” said Een, as reported on Monday (31/8).
She also emphasised the importance of the active role of parents in conducting regular checks. Monitoring a child’s weight, height, and physical condition is crucial so that any growth issues can be immediately detected and addressed through necessary medical interventions.
In line with this, the Head of the Tangerang City Health Office, Dini Angreeni, stated that the Tangerang City Government continues to optimise the strengthening of family resilience. This programme includes family mentoring, the strengthening of integrated healthcare centres (Posyandu), and interventions during the first 1,000 days of life.
These massive efforts have yielded positive results for the region. Based on data up to May 2026, the prevalence of stunting in Tangerang City has been successfully suppressed to 5.3%.
The Tangerang City Health Office is also mobilising Posyandu cadres to perform early detection through direct visits to residents’ homes. This proactive step aims to provide optimal health education to the wider community.
“The current health focus has shifted; prevention is better than cure. Through this competency strengthening, cadres are expected to be able to perform early detection while educating citizens optimally,” concluded Dini.