CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING

Introduction

Child feeding has become an interesting topic among researchers nowadays. In

this fast-paced world due to rising demands in technology as well as the inevitable

intervention of these technologies in people’s lives of all ages, for parents, child feeding

has even become a real challenge. Childhood nutrition in this period of life is crucial

because it guarantees physical growth and mental development, while at the same time

becomes a preventive factor for some diseases (Schmidt, Stack & Conde, 2018). The

context in which a child belongs has influence over her eating habits that can be

attributed to food availability at home, stipulate rules for eating practices and parents’

food behavior modeling (Calvaho, Fonseca, Priore, Franceschini & Novaes, 2015). In

addition to these, one factor that may have seen to affect the nutritional status of these

schoolchildren is their engagement to screen time brought about by the proliferation of

technology in every home.

Every parent cares more about their child’s well-being and success. Pinola (2020)

said that the world is now digitally-fueled, there is a need for strict guidance not just in

the real world that their children are involved but as well as in the virtual world they are

actively engaging. Some unhealthy signs that children have unhealthy use of the

technology are: they often complain that they are bored or unhappy when they do not

have access to technology; they have tantrums or harsh resistance when set with screen
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time limits; and screen time interferes their sleep, school, face-to-face communication

and food intake habits. If this happens, one of the aspects in child’s health that may be

affected is their nutrition.

Nutritional problems of the schoolchildren affect their physical and mental

development, and their education. Nutrition problems can arise from many factors that

can range from malnutrition to irregular and excessive feeding. However, socioeconomic,

genetic, culture, environment, level of education about nutrition, and family affect

students’ nutrition quality and their habits. Even underdeveloped, developing and

developed countries, the nutritional problems are different sizes, face with nutrition

related problems (Musaiger, 2004).

According to Spear (2002), rapid physical growth during childhood creates an

increased demand for energy and nutrients. So, the importance of developing healthful

eating habits during childhood and adolescence is obvious to decrease people's risk for a

number of immediate health problems, such as iron deficiency anemia, obesity, eating

disorders and dental caries, and may prevent long-term health problems as (heart disease,

cancer, stroke, hypertension and osteoporosis).

Childhood malnutrition continues to be a public health problem of school-aged

children in resource limited countries. Nutritional status is mainly measured by growth in

height and weight and is affected by food intake and incidence of childhood infections.

Of the 7.6 million deaths reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2010,

64% were attributable to infectious causes including pneumonia, diarrhea and malaria

which claimed the most lives (Lui, Johnson, Cousens, Perin, Scott, Lawn, Rudan,

Campbell, Cibulskis, Li, Mathers & Black, 2010).

Physical activities can contribute to a total wellness of young children which will

later on translate into physical fitness in adulthood (Utesch, Bardid, Busch, & Strauss

(2019). However, despite the importance of physical activities, only about half of school

children ages 5-12 years old meet the current physical activity recommended for them.

According to Joseph, Kracht, St. Romain, Allen, Barbaree, Martin, and Staiano (2019),

the current recommendation for this age group is three hours per day of any intensity

activity (light to moderate, or vigorous), which has been endorsed by four dependent

panels from separate countries (Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United

States). In addition, important guideline for young children is screen time (watching TV,

using computer, or playing video games) which is one hour or less per day (Okely,

Ghersi, & Hesketh, 2017; Tremblay, Chaput, &Adamo, 2017). But as proven in the

survey conducted, only 24.4% of school children met this guideline (Chaput, Colley,

Aubert, et. al, 2017). Early screen time done with toddlers may have association with

their social skills and screen time in their later age (Carson, Lee, Hesketh, et. al., 2019).

Therefore, this excess amount of screen time may hinder physical activity engagement

and its benefits (Joseph, et. al., 2019). Stated in The Australian Parenting Website (2019),

screen time can be part of a healthy lifestyle for children when it’s balance.

Parents are a large influence on young children’s physical activity and screen

time, and parents’ behaviors can both positively and negatively influence physical

activity and screen time (Garriguet, Collet and Bushnik, 2017). Despite parents’ large

influence and opportunity to model physical activity behaviors for their children,

previous qualitative studies have found mothers of 2 to 5 year olds felt that there were

many barriers to physical activity (Pratt, Fossen, Cotto-Maisonet, Palmet and Eneli,
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2017). Specifically, mothers felt that they had limited time to engage in physical activity

with their children due to household demands and have safety concerns at home for

physical activity, hence limiting physical activity opportunities.

In delivering health and nutrition, schools are appropriate avenue to reach out to

many parents because most of their time and theirs as well are spent in school in various

activities that the schools are conducting. In schools in the Philippines, nutrition and

health is being enforced by DepEd Order No. 43, s. 2011, also known as the

Strengthening the School Health and Nutrition Programs for the Achievement of the

Education for All (EFA) and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Likewise, there

are several activities that contribute good nutrition and health such as Gulayan sa

Paaralan Program, School Feeding Program, and the conduct of inventory of Nutritional

Status of every pupil. Statistics says that in 2011, about 32% of Filipino children 5 to 10

years were underweight, stunted (33/6), and aster (8.5%) (DOST-FNRI, 2011). Anaemia

prevalence among school children aged 6-12 years is 20% (DOST-FNRI, 2008). With the

school programs enforced such as the 120-day revitalized feeding programme, it improve

the nutritional status from severely waster to normal status, improve classroom

attendance by 85% to 100% and improve children’s health and nutrition values and

behavior (DepEd Order No. 87, s. 2012).

Meanwhile, the Sorsogon City is currently faced with children who are engrossed

with the use of technology such as the cellphone, tablets, ipads, laptops, desktops, PSP

among others. During the past years where face-to-face teaching was undergoing, these

gadgets are prohibited in schools. But because of the need for home learning in the new

normal, gadgets are freely used by children at homes, and their homes are now equipped
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with internet connectivity. Through this, they can instantly obtain information in different

media through the use of their gadgets. Also, children nowadays are not anymore settling

for simple cellphones even at young age. They wanted their units to be android or apple

so that they can enjoy the different formats of multimedia in the internet. Their parents

tolerate this context and serving this to their children may lessen their guilt of not giving

the best for their children. For some parents, screen time of children may widen their

world and enhance their cognitive ability needed to beat their academic challenges and

the demands especially of the distance learning setting. But there are times when this is

overdone and would lead to damages to children that are at first invisible to our eyes.

Above all, one concern of parents is about the physical health of their children at

this time that distance learning is being undertaken. Children are now vulnerable to

longer screen time due to distance learning. Classroom lessons are also now being served

through the internet and television shows. This setting has made school-age children

engage to technology. Consequently, parents need to monitor more importantly the

overall health of their children. This present research therefore would like to investigate

on the relationship of screen time of children and their nutritional status. With this study,

school and parents may be given awareness of what still to be done at home and at school

to help children overcome their dependence on technology and give more priority to their

health and nutrition. Likewise, school children may also be given the opportunity for a

balance lifestyle besides the limitation of space at this time of pandemic. Hence, this

research is deemed important.

Statement of the Problem

This study will determine the screen time (online and offline activities) and the

nutritional status of elementary pupils in Bacon District, Sorsogon City Division, SY

2019-2020. Specifically, this will answer the following sub-problems:

1. What is the profile of elementary pupils in terms of:

a. Age

b. Gender

c. Parents’ Income,

d. Gadgets Owned by the Parents and by the Pupils

e. Hours Spent on Online and Offline Activities by both parents and pupils

f. Nutritional Status of pupils?

2. What is the food behavior of these pupils as perceived by their parents?

3. What online and offline activities do these children have which are perceived by

parents to have effect on their food behavior?

4. What factors in the profile may have a significant relationship on the food

behavior of these pupils?

5. What practices do parents have to improve their children’s nutrition in the midst

of growing demands for the screen time due to distance learning?

6. What intervention may be proposed out of the results of the study?

Assumptions

With the above mentioned problems, the researcher outlined the following

hypothesis:
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1. The profiles of school children vary.

2. The food behavior of these school children varies.

3. Online and offline activities of these children which are perceived by parent to

have effect on their food behavior vary.

4. There are practices that parents have to improve their children’s nutrition in the

midst of growing demands for the screen time.

5. There is a proposed intervention according to the result of the study.

Hypothesis

1. There is no significant relationship between the profile and the food behavior of

these pupils.

Significance of the Study

The findings from this study may be beneficial to the following end-users:

Schoolchildren. This research is significant to schoolchildren because their

health welfare is the focus of this research. They may be given other healthy alternatives

to live healthy lives as early as their age so that they may continue to live healthier

without being too dependent to technology.

Parents. Parents may also gain benefit from this present research through

providing them with useful insight to beat the challenges of parents faced when it comes

to providing their children with balance life and promote good nutrition to their children

with less engagement to technology.

Teachers. Teacher may also gain advantage out of this study because it can

provide them with activities that can enhance nutritional status and invite schoolchildren

to limit their interaction with technology.

Administrators. Administrators may utilize the proposed school-based activities

so that they can promote good health through limited screen time habits of

schoolchildren.

Department of Education. The Department of Education may promote balance

health and nutrition through implementing programs that encourage teachers and parents

to make use of wholesome activities with less engagement to digital technologies, and

enforce the correct and appropriate use of technology in the classroom.

Department of Health. The Department of Health may be given insight to what

programs and projects to implement that may promote balance life among children of

school age.

Researchers. This research may open new research avenue to research

enthusiasts and may provide them with further inputs and research-based information that

they may be used to establish the gap between this research and their research.

Scope and Delimitation

This study will determine the screen time (online and offline activities) and its

effect on the nutritional status of elementary pupils in Bacon District, Sorsogon City

Division, SY 2019-2020. It will determine the profile of elementary pupils in terms of

Age, Gender, Parents’ Economic Status, Gadgets Owned by the Parents and by the

Pupils, Hours Spent on Online and Offline Activities by both parents and pupils, and
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Nutritional Status of pupils. It will also ascertain the food behavior of these pupils as

perceived by their parents; the online and offline activities these children have which are

perceived by parents to have effect on their food behavior; factors in the profile may have

a significant relationship on the food behavior of these pupils; and practices do parents

have to improve their children’s nutrition in the midst of growing demands for the screen

time. Lastly, it will propose an intervention out of the results of the study.

The respondents are the intermediate pupils (Grade four to Grade six) of Bacon

East District, Sorsogon City Division for SY 2019-2020. Parents of these children are

also part of this study. Other intermediate pupils from other school outside the said

district will not be part of the present study. Also other SY are not part of the study.

Parents whose children are not enrolled to in the intermediate classes are not part of the

study. Teachers and school heads are excluded.

Definition of Terms

The following terms are conceptually and operationally defined for clarity and

better understanding of this study.

Screen Time (Online and Offline Activities). This term is defined as the amount

of time spent using a device with a screen such as a smartphone, computer, television, or

video game console (Alvarez, Torres, Rodrigues, Padilla and Rodrigo, 2013). As used by

this study, it refers to the amount of time spent by school children to get engage with

different online and offline activities with the use of smartphone, computer, television, or

video game console.

Profile of elementary pupils profile of elementary pupils. This term refers to

schoolchildren’s profile along Age, Gender, Parents’ Economic Status, Gadgets Owned

by the Parents and by the Pupils, Hours Spent on Online and Offline Activities by both

parents and pupils, and Nutritional Status of pupils.

Food Behavior. It refers to the food choice and motives, feeding practices,

dieting and eating-related problems such as obesity (Joung, Kim, Yuan and Huffman,

2011). In this paper, this term refers to the food choices and motive, feeding practice,

dieting and eating-related problems of schoolchildren as viewed by their parents.

Practices of Parents to Improve their Children’s Nutrition. These are sets of

actions being done by parents to promote good health and well-being of their

schoolchildren.

Output of the study. This is the proposed output of the study.