A Community We Support: La Palmilla
Background
The Feed the Hungry school kitchen was established in the La Palmilla community in 2008. During school year 2023-2024, hot, nutritious meals are served every school day to 21 children at the Miguel Hidalgo preschool (kinder) and 59 children at the Juan José de los Reyes Martinez elementary (primaria) school. Our hydration program also provides clean water in large refillable jugs for the children in the classrooms and for food preparation in the school kitchen.
Location Statistics
The community is 21 kilometers from the Feed the Hungry Center. The latest census (2020) reported that the population of the La Palmilla community was 383 residents, residing in 102 households. Only 24% of homes had piped water. At that time, 38% were children age 14 or younger. The average school achievement for adults was less than 5 years; 19% of the adult population were illiterate. Of residents over 12 years of age, 43% were employed.
Nutrition Report – School Year 2022-2023
For the latest Nutrition Report, staff nutritionists assessed 57 primaria students through height, weight, and body fat measurements.
La Palmilla is a community with obvious economic deficiencies, largely due to the community’s distance from central San Miguel de Allende.
We now record cases where the children are “at risk” of becoming overweight, as they are close to the range for that category. The information shows us not only the risk of diseases related to overweight but also the tendency to suffer severe problems due to obesity. However, the comparison of the previous school year’s data shows an improvement in cases of both overweight and underweight.
Health Assessment Results
| Condition | Percent of Children |
|---|---|
| Obese | 5% |
| Overweight | 9% |
| At risk of overweight | 30% |
| Normal | 49% |
| Light underweight | 5% |
| Moderate underweight | 2% |
| Severe underweight | 0% |
Although the comparison of the data with respect to last year shows a remarkable improvement, we continue to see signs of nutritional deficiencies. Poor eating habits cause 50% of the children to show serious oral health problems, and to show signs of insulin resistance caused by consumption of foods with excess sugar.
Our intention is to increase the number of nutrition workshops for both children and their parents to provide guidance on healthy eating, good hygiene, and the importance of physical activity.
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