The UP Health Service (UPHS) kicked off its weeklong 94th anniversary celebration with lectures, fun activities, and a free nutritional screening.
The morning of Sept. 11 began with a ribbon-cutting ceremony symbolically opening festivities led by UPHS Director Myrissa Melinda Lacuna-Alip and UPHS Public Health Unit (PHU) head Oliva Salvador-Basuel.
After Alip’s short opening message, all those present were led by PHU staff member Angelito Firme Jr. in a two-minute warm-up dance to the tune of Kabibe sa Dagat.
This was followed by two public lectures, Pagkain nang Tama para sa Malusog na Pangangatawan at Tamang Timbang by Nafiza Gail Welba, RND and Food Supplements by Mary Christine Joy Keh, RPh.
Welba spoke about the increasing importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, emphasizing that as much as possible, fruit and vegetables should comprise half of food consumed at mealtimes.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, one of the top three causes of death in the country from January to December 2022 was ischaemic heart disease, a factor in which is lifestyle. The Department of Science and Technology Food and Nutrition Research Institute similarly reports that four out of 10 Filipinos aged 20 to 59 are either overweight or obese.
The UPHS offered free nutrition screening and assessment to the first 20 individuals courtesy of the UPHS Nutrition Clinic.
The event was just the first of a series of activities scheduled for the entire week, which includes free lectures on suicide prevention, rabies prevention, as well as free laboratory tests such as fasting blood sugar measurement (for the first 50 individuals).