Children’s health is among the biggest debates amongst the medical community during the present times, especially after the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Even though there has been more awareness regarding the issue in the past few years, many kids are experiencing an increased number of health problems.
Investigation on the problems faced by children and specific health issues which have risen has led the researchers to emphasize on the need for improving daily intake and diet.
More specifically, it has been noted that most kids do have the required nutritional content in their diets which essentially paves the way for not only short-term problems such as difficulty in concentrating, impact on school performance, laziness, and weakness but also several long-term issues.
Out of all the fundamental foods, milk and dairy seem to have declined significantly in the diet of children.
According to researchers, dairy foods contain a big number of nutrients that are vital in growing and can help in boosting health. A lack of dairy products in the diet can cause vitamin and nutrient deficiencies in the body, which can then hinder growth in kids.
This is also one of the reasons why the dairy industry in the country of Australia is currently trying to convince health experts and people that introducing national school milk programs is necessary once again.
The statistics from Australia show that around four in five children in the country do not have the daily recommended amount of servings of dairy products in their diets.
A national milk program in Australia was originally introduced in the mid-twentieth century which continued for decades with the primary purpose of boosting nutrition and health in children.
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As the program had cuts in its funding, it was eventually discontinued at the beginning of the twenty-first century. However, now many people and the dairy industry are demanding for the program to start once again.
While some people argue that the industry may have been lobbying for re-starting the program only for its own benefits and boost in sales, it should be noted that the rates of poverty have risen since the end of the federal milk scheme.
This means that many of the families and parents of the children attending schools are not able to afford dairy products and other essential foods.
A national milk program can boost the health of children overall but also specifically help families with financial issues especially now that the coronavirus pandemic has also contributed to unemployment and financial uncertainty.
Therefore, introducing the program can not only help the dairy industry but also control the decline in children’s health in the country.
For a better and more effective program, the industry has argued that there is a need for a carefully-planned initiative that ensures providing quality milk to schools as well as awareness campaigns that can make the parents of the kids understand the importance of having dairy products in the daily intake of their child.
