Benefits Of An Egg A Day For The Nigerian Child

THE World Egg Day is celebrated every year on the second Friday of October. The Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) celebrated this year’s World Egg Day penultimate Friday with the theme: ‘The benefits of an egg a day for the Nigerian child’.

Both the big and small poultry famers in Lagos attended the programme organized by Lagos State Chapter of PAN at Ajah, Lagos. Participants of the programme were told about the benefits to the Nigerian child of eating an egg per day vis-a-vis the programme of this current administration of giving school children a meal per day.

Former Senior Special Adviser For Agriculture to former Lagos State governor Babtunde Raji Fashola, Dr N.O Funsho lamented that millions of Nigerian children are malnourished. He said that egg contains vitamins that are good for the body.

Vitamin A is necessary for healthy cells. It helps to maintain healthy skin and eye tissue and assist in eye vision. Vitamin A also increases the immune system. Vitamin B is important for the body’s metabolism, for releasing energy from food and for mental performance. We quickly go for fruits, vegetables ,meat etc. But one food contains all. The Australian Heart Foundation recommends that we eat six eggs a week,” Funsho said.

He noted that in most parts of the world, the Word Egg Day is celebrated in the form of omelet cooking competition, donation of egg recipe booklets, boiled egg donation, radio and TV advertisement, and round table discussion among others.

Former Vice Chairman, Eti-Osa Lagos PAN, Godwin Egbebe said:
“We deem it fit that if the government can include an egg in the meal for school children it will go a long way to boost the nutritional value of the children. You know that egg is a complete meal on its own. If a child has an egg in his or her meal a day, it will go a long way to promote the health of the child.”

According to him, protein is a very scarce commodity now. “Especially animal protein which egg can provide. Egg has protein that can be easily assessable.” He said that no matter what you are eating, even if it is not rich in protein and you add just an egg to it , you have almost balanced a diet”.

Egbebe said that if the government can assist farmers to get loans, they would be able to produce more than enough eggs for the country. “We would be able to produce eggs for export to neigbouring countries. When you look at inflation rate in the country, I don’t think that egg is expensive. It is not a luxury, it is a necessity”.