Manila: The Philippines continues to face a double burden of malnutrition, with 43 percent of Filipino adults overweight or obese and one in four children affected by stunting, the National Nutrition Council (NNC) said Thursday.
According to Philippines News Agency, citing the latest National Nutrition Survey of the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute, NNC Nutrition Information and Education Division officer-in-charge Jomarie Tongol said the prevalence of adult overweight and obesity has reached a level of public health significance. "Obesity is considered a disease, not only a risk factor for diabetes, cardiovascular disease or cancer," Tongol said in a Radyo Pilipinas interview.
She attributed the rising prevalence of overweight and obesity to several factors, including genetic predisposition, unhealthy diets, physical inactivity, inadequate sleep, and an increasingly "obesogenic food environment." The widespread availability of processed and unhealthy food products, combined with the convenience of online food delivery, has contributed to changing eating habits, Tongol said. Physical inactivity is also a major factor as more Filipinos lead sedentary lifestyles, she said.
Tongol said inadequate breastfeeding during the first 1,000 days of life has also been linked to a higher likelihood of children becoming overweight or obese. The government has adopted policies and programs under the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition to address the problem, with a focus on the first 1,000 days of life - from conception to a child's second birthday - as a critical period for preventing undernutrition and excessive weight gain.
Tongol also warned against the misconception that an overweight child is necessarily a healthy child, saying childhood obesity can persist into adolescence and adulthood and increase the risk of noncommunicable diseases.
At the other end of the malnutrition spectrum, the prevalence of stunting among Filipino children rose to 25.3 percent in 2025 from 23.6 percent in 2023, according to the 2025 updating survey of the National Nutrition Survey. "This means that one out of four Filipino children is affected by stunting," Tongol said. Among children ages 0 to 2, however, stunting declined slightly to 21.1 percent in 2025 from 22.5 percent in 2023.
Tongol said the figures underscore the country's continuing double burden of malnutrition, with stunting affecting young children while overweight and obesity remain prevalent among adults. The NNC is promoting exclusive breastfeeding, appropriate complementary feeding starting at 6 months, proper sanitation, and adequate nutrition for pregnant women and young children.
It also provides technical support for dietary supplementation programs, including school-based feeding initiatives of the Department of Education and supplementation programs of the Department of Social Welfare and Development for children in Child Development Centers. The NNC also supports supplementation for pregnant women considered nutritionally at risk and children ages 6 to 23 months who are underweight or at risk of stunting.
Tongol urged families to make use of government nutrition services and adopt healthier eating and lifestyle practices. She advised Filipinos to monitor their weight, eat balanced and nutritious meals, limit salty, oily, fatty, and sugary foods, stay physically active, and get adequate rest and sleep.
