A common challenge that is shared by a number of impoverished countries is the reality of malnourishment amongst its children. This concern was brought to light in the country of Mexico through the reality that over 5 million children died from the effects of malnutrition. Fortunately, the medical leaders of Mexico, in concert with the Mexican government, undertook a Mexican baby care initiative to address this unacceptable loss of life. The dual goals of this initiative were to address the present reality of malnutrition amongst babies as well as to break the cycle of improper nutrition. The first method was through education and the second component was to provide education and incentives to assure that families participated in the initiative. The Challenge Of Malnutrition The devastation of experiencing malnutrition in a culture can produce a number of negative repercussions. Three of those repercussions can include the loss of life, a lack of nutritional needs to insure healthy growth or the creation or perpetuation of a generational negative cycle. Obviously, the loss of life due to the lack of nutritional food is of the utmost concern for any responsible country. Generally, a nation whose people are malnourished will do everything within governmental powers to address this situation and provide for the country's most valuable resource. A nation's most valuable resource is its people. However, if malnourishment is allowed to continue and does not lead to the fatality of that individual there may be other serious consequences. Those consequences can include, especially in children, a lack of nutrients which in turn may prevent the normal growth and development of the child. In addition to the present dangers of malnutrition are the future dangers if this condition is not addressed. Those future dangers are seen in subsequent generations of families who remain uneducated and perpetuate the malnutrition cycle. Mexican Baby Care Program To address the devastating effects of malnutrition and to provide for a normal healthy life and lives to come, an educational component to the Mexican baby care initiative was instigated. This educational thrust emphasized the importance of families to take advantage of vaccinations, keep regular baby care appointments, track the growth of the child, participate in nutritional classes, etc. In addition to education a practical nutritional component was provided. This aspect of the Mexican baby care program provided nutritional supplements to participating family members. These fortified nutritional supplements provided the necessary vitamins and minerals required by the body to maintain and enhance healthy growth. Also, incentives were added to the Mexican baby care program to encourage the participation of families. These incentives were in the form of cash grants and were awarded based on the family's full involvement. That full involvement required the participation of the children in the educational opportunities afforded and the family's adherence to the nutrition education component of the Mexican baby care program.
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