Gaza – Most of the one million and 800 thousand inhabitants of the Gaza Strip cannot afford adequate food, partly because of higher food prices following the latest Israeli military action. Children and young people are those who suffer most, they represent half the population.
A study carried out by the Palestinian Medical Relief Society (PMRS) revealed that 52% of children in the Gaza Strip suffer from anemia and severe phosphorus, calcium and zinc deficiencies, while a significant number of children suffer from respiratory infections. After the last Israeli military action, Caritas Jerusalem has launched a project aimed at improving food standards for children in the Gaza Strip between the ages of 5 and 12, giving them milk and food products specifically to meet their nutritional deficiencies.
The project involves 5 thousand children and young people from 10 different areas of the Gaza Strip, and in a first phase will seek to identify the thousands of cases of severe malnutrition. After the screening, the thousand children taken into consideration will be fed for six months with a special diet, which also provides for the use of milk and biscuits. At the end of six months, the effects of this diet on the overall health of the children will be monitored through testing and medical analysis. Later, the project will be gradually extended to other sections of the child population of Gaza, with the use of diets tailored on the basis of the scientific data in the initial experimental phase.
Source: Agenzia Fides