Ama Hienne Amoako, a Dietician at International Maritime Hospital (IMaH), has encouraged the consumption of green leafy vegetables packed with essential nutrients to support healthy growth and development.

She stated that green leafy vegetables, which include kontomire and dandelion, among others, are rich in folic acid, which she advised pregnant women to consume to aid in their brain development.

The IMaH Dietician was speaking at the weekly “Your Health! Our Collective Responsibility! A Ghana News Agency Tema Regional Office initiative aimed at promoting health-related communication and providing a platform for health information dissemination to influence personal health choices through improved health literacy

The Ghana News Agency’s Tema Regional Office developed the public health advocacy platform “Your Health! Our Collective Responsibility” to investigate the components of four health communication approaches: informing, instructing, convincing, and promoting.

Speaking on “Paediatric Nutrition”, Ms. Amoako added that the consumption of fruits like oranges, pawpaws, sweet potatoes, and palm oil, which are foods high in vitamin A for pregnancy, helps to maintain clear eyesight for the mother and child.

Also, iron supplements, when taken during the pregnancy stages, help in the development of the child.

She recommended that pregnant women choose a meal from the four-star diet and even after delivery that included staples, legumes and seed foods, fruits and vegetables, and animal sources; therefore, it should also be served on a child’s plate to serve as a balanced diet.

“The four-star diet, when consumed, helps the body fight diseases and keeps the body fit,” she noted.

Ms. Amoako reiterated that folic acid supplements are prescribed by a physician during the antenatal stage, including iron supplements, to prevent any deficiency in the baby when it is formed or delivered.

She said each nutritional essential provided in our meals plays a vital role in the immunisation and development of the body.

“Parents with newly born babies should bring them out for the early morning sun, which provides vitamin D and also aids in the identification of the child’s eyes if any changes occur,” she advised.

Francis Ameyibor, Ghana News Agency Tema Regional Manager, emphasised in his welcome address the urgent need for the media and health professionals to collaborate towards holistic health care.

He noted that the communication of accurate health information to the target audience is critical to preventing and promoting a healthy lifestyle.

Mr. Ameyibor noted that “developing and deepening a working relationship between media practitioners and health professionals would eventually create a channel for the transmission of accurate health communication.”