By partnering with Central American Medical Outreach, Inc. (CAMO) and Fundación CAMO Honduras to provide albendazole, an anti-parasitic, Vitamin Angels is helping create a brighter future for young children with intestinal parasites in Honduras.
Soil Transmitted Helminths (STH) infections caused by parasitic worms—that prevent the proper absorption of nutrients—are prevalent due to poor infrastructure and insufficient water, sanitation, and hygiene measures.
Almost 625,000 preschool-aged children in Honduras are at risk of infection, according to the World Health Organization. 1
Among the lowest-income households in Honduras:2,3
While Honduras’ government has been working to improve living conditions, almost 625,000 preschool-aged children are still at risk of infections, according to the WHO.1
To reach nutritionally vulnerable children in Honduras, Vitamin Angels partners with CAMO, a humanitarian organization that brings life-saving medical services, education, and community development to Central America.
Bianca Ramirez, Nutritionist of Fundación CAMO in Santa Rosa de Copán, explains the organization’s approach:
“In terms of need, CAMO’s approach is to improve the quality of patient health in all areas, including the nutritional part, because an underweight or overweight patient with deficiencies is a patient who is always prone to being ill due to inadequate nutrition.”
A team of nurses, social workers, and community partners make education, especially within rural communities, a priority.
“Sometimes these families may have resources available, but if they do not know the usefulness, preparation, and importance of proper nutrition, our work is wasted,” explains CAMO Nutritionist Bianca Ramírez, Santa Rosa de Copán. “That is why our main objective is helping them acquire knowledge related to their health and nutrition.”
Fortunately, efforts to educate families with young children about available solutions are helping make an impact in Honduras, where STH is endemic.
Today, CAMO distributes Vitamin Angels’ albendazole grants along with vitamin A to children under five, as well as prenatal vitamins and minerals to pregnant women. In 2021, VA delivered enough albendazole to partners in Honduras, including CAMO, to reach 340,000 children—helping to protect them from illness and improving absorption of key nutrients, like vitamin A.
CAMO’s strategy is paying off, with the organization reporting “the incidence of intestinal parasitism has decreased.”
“It is useless to supplement if the child has a parasitic load. Working with Vitamin
Angels has helped us improve the population’s health and nutritional status while
making nutritional treatment more effective,” says Ramírez. “Big thanks for allowing
us to support the most vulnerable populations every day.
It is useless to supplement if the child has a parasitic load. Working with Vitamin Angels has helped us improve the population’s health and nutritional status while making nutritional treatment more effective. Big thanks for allowing us to support the most vulnerable populations every day.
-Bianca Ramirez, Nutritionist of Fundación CAMO
1 https://apps.who.int/neglected_diseases/ntddata/sth/sth.html geog=0&indicator=i0&date=2020&bbox=-101.5262406374502,8.533190918472656,-71.4465593625
498,18.533190918472656&select=HND&printmode=true
2https://www.olasdata.org/en/honduras/
3https://www.habitat.org/sites/default/files/documents/ENG_Honduras_AF21.pdf