She explained that continued weight checks helped to detect potential health issues early and ensure that children are gaining weight appropriately until the age of five.
Dr Essel made the call at the launch of the 2025 Child Health Promotion Week, organised by the Ga East Municipal Health Directorate, on the theme: “Every Child Deserves a Healthy Future; Invest in Your Child. Attend Weighing Regularly.”
She said many parents stopped attending weighing sessions once their children turn three, which poses a challenge to effective monitoring of child development.
“Beyond a certain point, some parents do not see the need to continue taking their children to the weighing station. This perception is worrying,” she said.
“There are also parents who still believe in misconceptions that vaccines are harmful or used for sterilisation. This affects turnout and child health outcomes,” she added.
Dr Essel noted that as part of the week-long campaign, mothers would be educated on the benefits of attending regular weigh-ins.
Hajia Barikisu Haruna Zakaria, the Ga East Municipal Nutrition Officer, stressed the importance of proper nutrition in the first five years of life, describing it as crucial to a child’s overall health and well-being.
“A nutrient-dense diet supports healthy brain development, strengthens the immune system, and reduces the risk of chronic diseases later in life,” she said.
She added that malnutrition could lead to developmental delays and learning difficulties, hence the need for growth monitoring to inform appropriate dietary recommendations.
“When we counsel mothers based on a child’s weight and they adhere to the advice, the child grows very well. Brain development, especially in children under two years, can be improved through proper nutrition,” she said.
She encouraged parents to continue attending weighing sessions, where they can receive free services including nutrition counselling and early detection of health concerns.
The 2025 Child Health Promotion Week, organised in partnership with Arisefoods Limited, began on May 12 and is expected to end on May 16.
Activities for the week include a health walk, durbar, food demonstrations, free IUD insertions at Taifa Polyclinic, Abokobi, and Boi Health Centres, a Vitamin A campaign in selected schools, an Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) mop-up in all sub-municipals, as well as community and facility-based health education sessions.
Dr Nana Achiaa Ankrah, the Chief Executive Officer of Arisefoods Limited, commended the Health Directorate for the initiative aimed at ensuring the optimal growth and development of under-five children.
She said her company’s mission aligned with the campaign as it focused on providing nutritious, locally produced foods for babies, toddlers, and adults.
“We are here to ensure Ghanaian children have access to nutritious food made from fresh, locally grown produce,” she said.
Dr Ankrah encouraged mothers who had completed the six-month exclusive breastfeeding period to consider their range of complementary food products to boost babies’ nutritional needs.
GNA
