Optimized Nutritional Intakes of Fishers’ Children in Coastal Communities in Mabini, Davao de Oro, Philippines

Abstract

In the Philippines, the fishers’ children are one of the groups with the highest prevalence of malnutrition. Mabini in Davao De Oro is among the municipalities affected by the high incidence of nutrition inadequacies. The study assessed the dietary intakes of fishers’ school-aged children during three seasons: Northeast Monsoon (NEM), summer, and Southwest Monsoon (SWM). A stratified random sampling was used to obtain the 112 fishing household data, and the three-day diet recall approach was utilized in gathering nutrition information of 178 fishers’ children during the 2017–2018 period. From the Kruskal Wallis test followed by Dunn’s post-hoc test, results showed that the total catch per week, income per week, and the average selling price of fish during the three seasons were significantly different with catch and income levels higher during the NEM followed by SWM and summer. Moreover, the results from the linear programming show that the average nutrient intakes of the children were found to be inadequate compared to the recommended energy and nutrient intakes. This result is more noticeable during the summer season when there are low catch and income levels. The results from the optimal diet plan suggest that the recommended nutrient intakes can be attained by increasing the consumption of locally available fish resources and decreasing the consumption of processed foods. Finally, local interventions such as food fortification, school-based feeding programs, and diet supplementation can increase the nutrient adequacy of children in coastal communities.