Melanie Galvin

Chief of Nutrition with @UNICEFAfg. Working to nourish children's bodies and minds, and shape policies to support childhood nutrition. Views/reposts my own.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

#UNICEFAfg set up an early warning nutrition surveillance system deep into remote communities so we can discover deteriorating nutrition situations as early as possible. Saving more children. Sparing needless suffering.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

#OneUN actions help us amplify our impact for children. Thanks #UNFPAAfg for adding lifesaving nutrition treatments at your Family Health Households in the South! Mothers do not have to leave their communities to get help they need.

@unafghanistan
@VeronicaHouser2

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

@KittyvdHeijden @UNICEF Welcome from sunny Kabul

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

This is what we like to see! A plump happy breastfed baby. #ForEveryChild Health.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

Female nutrition counselors and female nutrition workers are essential if we want to support mothers to breastfeed.

The more women who can breastfeed for longer, the greater the chances we can prevent acute malnutrition.

[UNICEF Afghanistan @UNICEFAfg]

Let's talk about breastfeeding! 🤱

Female nutrition counsellors in Afghanistan provide invaluable advice, care, and hands-on assistance for mothers struggling to breastfeed. Healthy babies need to breastfeed, and sometimes breastfeeding is a team effort! 👭

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

#ForEveryChild, Hope

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

Mobile teams travel in Kunar Afghanistan. One mother walked two hours to reach a clinic with her severely malnourished child. ⁦⁦@UNICEFAfg⁩ is improving services directly in communities so moms will not have to make this trek. #ForEveryChild, Nutrition.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

What are the benefits of vitamin A?
👀Good vision & avoiding night blindness
💪Robust immune system
🌱Growth and development

In April, @UNICEFAfg gave vitamin A supplements to 1.4 million children alongside immunisation campaigns, so they can grow up strong and healthy!

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

Sometimes little ones need more than just RUTF when they need treatment for severe acute malnutrition.

@UNICEFAfg supports inpatient wards in hospitals and health facilities for mothers and children who need the extra care and medical attention.

[UNICEF Afghanistan @UNICEFAfg]

Women training women! 👭

In partnership with @EUinAfghanistan, UNICEF has trained 1,165 nutrition workers in central Afghanistan.

Trained nutrition counselors like Zahra are sharing their knowledge with less experienced colleagues, building a bigger cadre of skilled women. 💙

[Chef José Andrés 🕊️🥘🍳 @chefjoseandres]

The time has come to prioritize food in our public policy...at home and around the world.

Our solutions for fixing the global food system need to be rethought.

Today, we are proud to launch the Global Food Institute at @GWTweets.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

We are lucky to have such a highly skilled woman like Dr. Zarmina. Women need other women to share concerns on nutritional issues like breastfeeding. Her expertise keeps @UNICEFAfg nutrition services informed and responsive to the needs of Afghan women.

[UNICEF Afghanistan @UNICEFAfg]

Breastfeeding is the best nutrition for a young child. 🤱 But it isn't always easy.

As a @UNICEF Nutrition Officer, Dr. Zarmina meets with mothers and nutrition counsellors to offer breastfeeding tips and advice, so mums can nourish their babies with skill and confidence.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

Proud Grandpa is head of the health shura ( committee) in Jaarf Village Daikundi. His daughter is the local midwife. Could his granddaughter be the village doctor someday? #ForEveryChild, Hope. ⁦@UNICEFAfg⁩

[Melinda French Gates @melindagates]

.@UNICEF's latest report underscores an urgent problem: More than one billion adolescent girls and women are undernourished.

Read the report to learn how we can navigate our way out of this crisis: https://t.co/hPiZNSoFNU

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

The problem: Poor nutrition has affected more than 2.8 million women and adolescent girls in Afghanistan.

The solution: Making nutritious food affordable and available to every girl and woman and supporting mothers before, during and after pregnancy.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

A reality check this #WomensDay: In Afghanistan more than 2.8 MILLION girls and women are undernourished.

But this doesn’t have to be their reality. Making nutritious food affordable and available and supporting mothers before, during and after pregnancy can break this cycle.

[UNICEF Afghanistan @UNICEFAfg]

This #WomensDay, we’re raising the alarm.

More than 2.8 million adolescent girls and women in Afghanistan suffer from undernutrition, lack of vital nutrients and anaemia.

The world must step up to secure good nutrition for women and adolescent girls.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

In Afghanistan, 2.8 million women and adolescent girls are undernourished.

We need to invest in nutrition programmes for women, making sure they have healthy and diverse diets, healthcare before, during and after pregnancy, and more.

[UNICEF Afghanistan @UNICEFAfg]

This #WomensDay, @UNICEF is raising the alarm.

In Afghanistan, the estimated number of malnourished pregnant and breastfeeding women has increased by 49 percentage points.

Investing in essential nutrition programmes for women and adolescent girls can reverse this trend.

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

This year, @UNICEFAfg urgently needs $186 million for our humanitarian nutrition response:

📦To buy the supplies we need and prevent shortages
👶To treat 875,000 children for severe acute malnutrition
🤰To educate and counsel pregnant and breastfeeding women on good nutrition

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

20% fewer children in Afghanistan were admitted for treatment of severe acute malnutrition in January, when compared with December.

But this doesn't mean there are fewer children who are malnourished.

So what happened? A thread. 👇

[Melanie Galvin @melgalvin01]

With increasing restrictions on women’s movement across Afghanistan, mothers are often scared or uncertain about traveling with their children to the nutrition facilities.

But @UNICEFAfg-supported nutrition counsellors and nurses are waiting to receive them when they do.