Following the successful No Smoking Month celebration held in Zamboanga Peninsula last June, the Biyaheng Kalusugan caravan headed to Ilocos Norte and Central Luzon for Nutrition Month in July. For this leg, the Department of Health (DOH) made Nutrition Month more festive with the Pinggang Pinoy Festival in Paniqui Public Market (Tarlac) on July 20, and Laoag City Hall (Ilocos Norte) on July 26. The initiative is part of the Healthy Pilipinas campaign which promotes the 7 Healthy Habits across all 17 regions in the country.

Over 200 Tarlaceños joined DOH’s Pinggang Pinoy Festival in Paniqui

As with the previous runs of the Biyaheng Kalusugan, the festivities made health education fun and engaging through exciting experiences, healthy food choices, and informative installations. Central to the Pinggang Pinoy Festival are the various Sayaw, Sustansya, and Sarap activities, which were designed to encourage everyone to get moving and eat right in celebration of Nutrition Month.

The festivities began with ‘Galaw sa Beat, Sabay-Sabay!’, an activity that featured a parade of street dancers to enjoin the residents of Paniqui to start their day with physical activity. The Galaw-Moji Stage encouraged participants to show off their dance moves as they came up with improvised steps based on emojis flashed on the screen.

In line with the Nutrition Month theme from the National Nutrition Council, “Healthy diet gawing affordable for all”, the Pinggang Pinoy Festival highlighted the many options available to Filipinos to achieve a healthy diet through the Wastong Kain, Walang Sablay activity.

The Pinggang Pinoy Puzzle challenged attendees to place different food items under their proper food group while reinforcing visual memory of the proper portion recommended by the Pinggang Pinoy. Meanwhile, five challengers competed in the Presyong Tama Ba?, a price guessing game that featured sample meals from the Pinggang Pinoy!

As the festival provided practical knowledge to the attendees and helped them practice Healthy Habit #1: Move More, Eat Right, a market run entitled Mamalengke Tayo! was held where a registered nutritionist-dietician accompanied one of the festival attendees and gave out tips and suggestions on meal planning and budgeting.

To reinforce the healthy habits and tips from the Pinggang Pinoy Festival, there will also be public market installations placed in both localities. Dropdown banners and functional billboards with Ulam Ideas will be displayed across barangays and public markets. Meanwhile, Pinggang Pinoy Nudges will also be placed along the aisles of various food items to prompt shoppers to purchase healthy food pairings.

“We hope that these activities that we initiate become key avenues for optimum health for our kababayans as this is a vital part of our 8-point agenda under the helm of Pag-Iwas sa Sakit. Ngayong unti-unti na tayong umaalpas mula sa pandemya, mahalagang mabigyan natin ng pansin ang pagkakaroon ng malakas na resistensya at pangangatawan.” expressed DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa.

From human-centered design for behavior change to quick response community support amid Super Typhoon Egay

DOH and the Local Government Unit of Laoag City joined forces to pivot Biyaheng Kalusugan’s Pinggang Pinoy Festival into a support effort for 171 evacuees and 130 responders from the local rescue team in Laoag City Hall.

Biyaheng Kalusugan continued to provide nutrition education through activity booths and distribution of balanced and well-moderated meals guided by Pinggang Pinoy to all evacuees. A live feed for weather updates and typhoon forecast track was set up using the LED display intended for the Pinggang Pinoy Festival.

The DOH remains committed to working with our Local Government Units in promoting the health and well-being of all Filipinos through challenging times. “We express our gratitude to the LGU of Laoag City for working with us in providing support to those affected by the typhoon. Sa panahon ng sakuna, mas lalo nating nakikita ang kahalagahan ng paghahanda at pangangalaga sa ating katawan at kalusugan para makaiwas sa sakit. Ang ating naging maagap na pagkilos para tumugon sa pangangailangan ng mga kababayan natin sa Laoag ay katibayan ng ating tugon tungo sa mithiing – Sa Healthy Pilipinas, Bawat Buhay Mahalaga,” Secretary Herbosa added.

To learn more about the 7 Healthy Habits, Biyaheng Kalusugan, and other upcoming Healthy Pilipinas initiatives, you may visit healthypilipinas.ph.