Friday , March 29 2024
The hunger crisis in Syria is putting children at risk of deadly malnutrition.

Plumpy’Doz Needed in Syria to Stop Deadly Child Malnutrition

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) said today that Plumpy’Doz, a food to prevent deadly malnutrition, is being used in war-torn Syria. The food, a nutrient-rich peanut paste, is being deployed at health centers in Damascus. It will be distributed more widely in the coming days with the help of UNICEF.

Laure Chadraoui of WFP says the agency will soon have enough Plumpy’Doz to treat close to 100,000 children.

There are an estimated four million people displaced within Syria. They have lost everything. Their livelihoods are gone. Food production in the country has been stopped in many areas because of damage to factories. It is not safe for farmers to go to their fields. What food can be produced is very high-priced.

This hunger crisis is taking its toll on children. When food becomes scarce small children are most at risk for malnutrition, which can have deadly consequences at that age.

Without the right food, infants can suffer physical or mental damage which cannot be reversed. Plumpy’Doz, a food which requires no preparation or refrigration, is used to prevent this from happening.

Save the Children released a report that shows the horror of hunger unfolding from this conflict. The report states, “few displaced families have any food stocks at all. They are having to cut down on the number of meals they and their children eat each day.”

If this war continues more children will be at risk of starvation. Aid agencies, such as WFP and Save the Children, need continuous funding to keep the humanitarian pipeline of food well stocked. They are feeding not only war victims inside Syria but around a million people who have fled to neighboring countries.

About William Lambers

William Lambers is the author of several books including Ending World Hunger: School Lunches for Kids Around the World. This book features over 50 interviews with officials from the UN World Food Programme and other charities discussing school feeding programs that fight child hunger. He is also the author of Nuclear Weapons, The Road to Peace: From the Disarming of the Great Lakes to the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, Open Skies for Peace, The Spirit of the Marshall Plan: Taking Action Against World Hunger, School Lunches for Kids Around the World, The Roadmap to End Global Hunger, From War to Peace and the Battle of Britain. He is also a writer for the History News Service. His articles have been published by newspapers including the Cincinnati Enquirer, Des Moines Register, the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Buffalo News, San Diego Union Tribune, the Providence Journal, Free Lance-Star (VA), the Bakersfield Californian, the Washington Post, Miami Herald (FL), Chicago Sun-Times, the Patriot Ledger (MA), Charleston Sunday Gazette Mail (WV), the Cincinnati Post, Salt Lake Tribune (UT), North Adams Transcript (MA), Wichita Eagle (KS), Monterey Herald (CA), Athens Banner-Herald (GA) and the Duluth News Journal. His articles also appear on History News Network (HNN) and Think Africa Press. Mr. Lambers is a graduate of the College of Mount St. Joseph in Ohio with degrees in Liberal Arts (BA) and Organizational Leadership (MS). He is also a member of the Feeding America Blogger Council.

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