Countrywide vitamin ‘A' plus campaign underway

Staff Correspondent: The national Vitamin A plus campaign is underway across the country today.

Nearly 2.20 crore children aged from six months to 59 months are being fed Vitamin A-plus capsules. The vitamin capsule centers will remain open till 4:00 pm.

Health ministry sources said the children are being fed capsules at 1.20 lakh permanent and 20,000 mobile centres across the country.

Mobile centres have been set up at bus stops, airports and launch terminals and other transport points to administer the children vitamin-A plus capsules.

At least two trained volunteers are working at each centre.

Among the total children, around 25 lakh aged between six to 11 months are being fed one blue colour Vitamin-A capsule each, while around 1.94 crore babies aged between 12 to 59 months are being fed red color capsules.

The parents are requested to bring their children with full stomach to be fed the Vitamin-A capsule. Children should not be fed capsules forcefully or while they are crying. Children aged below six months or more than five years or with any kind of sickness should not be fed the capsules.

The government wants to prevent childhood blindness by administering vitamin-A plus capsule. Blindness problem has been reduced significantly in the country through launching vitamin A plus campaign. Less than one percent children now suffer from blindness for vitamin A deficiency.

Feeding of Vitamin-A capsule not only keep the children safe from night-blindness, it also increases their immune system, keep their eyesight perfect, bring down the child mortality rate and ensure their natural growth among other benefits.

The government feeding vitamin A plus capsule two times a year as it deposits up to six months in children’s body. Alongside having vitamin A plus capsule, guardians should feed their children natural foods including vegetable and fish to avoid vitamin A deficiency.

risingbd/Dhaka/Jun 22, 2019/Hasibul/Nasim/Mukul