Nutrition
Understanding RUTF: Ghana’s lifeline for malnourished children
EVERY year, thousands of children across Ghana face the harsh realities of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), a condition that weakens their immunity, disrupts growth, affects brain development, and puts their lives at risk. While families often strive to provide the best they can, the rising cost of food, inadequate dietary diversity, and limited access to nutrition services have made malnutrition an increasingly complex challenge. Amid this struggle, one intervention has stood out as a game changer: Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF).
RUTF is a specially formulated, nutrient-packed therapeutic paste used to treat children suffering from severe malnutrition. Typically made from peanuts, milk powder, vegetable oil, sugar, and a precise blend of vitamins and minerals, RUTF provides every nutrient a severely malnourished child needs to recover rapidly.
What makes RUTF extraordinary is not just its nutritional composition, but its practicality. It requires no cooking, no mixing with water, and no refrigeration, all of which make it ideal for families in communities where clean water, electricity, and food storage are major challenges.
Health professionals consider RUTF one of the most effective treatment tools in global child health. In Ghana, its use within the Community-Based Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) programme has allowed caregivers to administer treatment at home while receiving periodic monitoring from health workers. This approach dramatically reduces hospital congestion, cuts costs for families who would otherwise travel long distances for care, and allows children to heal in the comfort of familiar surroundings.
In addition, RUTF supports early recovery by improving appetite, restoring energy, and ensuring steady weight gain, which is critical factors for long-term healthy development. Understanding what RUTF is and why it matters is essential as Ghana continues to confront rising cases of childhood malnutrition linked to economic hardships, climate shocks, and gaps in nutrition governance. RUTF is more than food; it is a lifeline. It is a second chance for children whose futures are threatened not by disease or injury, but by the simple lack of nutritious meals.
Feature article by Women, Media and Change under its Nourish Ghana: Advocating for Increased Leadership to Combat Malnutrition project.
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Nutrition
Healthy diets are not just personal choices: Ghana must fix the food environmentBy Marilyn Gadogbe
Ghanaian families are increasingly consuming unhealthy foods because the environment makes them the easiest and cheapest choice. From sugary drinks and pastries in schools to instant noodles at home, daily diets are pushing the nation toward hypertension, diabetes, and other diet-related diseases.
Key points:
- Choice is limited: People often pick energy-dense, processed foods not out of carelessness but because they are affordable, convenient, and heavily marketed.
- Health risks: Ultra-processed snacks are becoming common in urban homes, contributing to rising chronic diseases and a growing public health burden.
- Policy vs. personal responsibility: Individual choices matter most when supported by a healthy environment. Policies can enable responsible decisions, just as traffic laws support safe driving.
Proposed 5-Point Action Plan for Ghana:
- Front-of-pack warning labels: FDA & MoH to mandate clear labels on high-sugar or high-salt products.
- Marketing restrictions: FDA to limit advertising of unhealthy foods to children, especially near schools.
- School food standards: GES & School Feeding Programme to prioritize nutrient-dense local foods and limit sugary drinks.
- Sugar levy: MoF & MoH to tax sugar-sweetened beverages and use revenue to subsidize fresh fruits and vegetables in low-income areas.
- Strengthen local food systems: MoFA & Local Assemblies to invest in fresh food access, storage, and market infrastructure.
Conclusion:
A healthier Ghana requires designing a supportive food environment through policy. Diet-related diseases are not just personal choices—they reflect the system people live in. Without structural change, preventable illnesses will continue to burden the nation.
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Yake Yake is a traditional Ghanaian dish from the Volta Region made from steamed, grated cassava. It is similar to Attieke but typically steamed in a different, more rustic, or water-free style.
Ingredients
- 4 tubes of cassava
- Salt to taste
Preparation
- Peel the cassava tubers, remove the fibrous inner core, and wash thoroughly.
- Grate the cassava using a blender or grater until it is fine and grainy.
- Place the grated cassava into a muslin or cheesecloth and squeeze out as much water as possible.
- Pass the dried, squeezed cassava through a strainer to separate coarse chunks, ensuring a fine, powdery texture.
- Line a steamer (or a pot with a perforated insert) with a cheesecloth. Pour the cassava flakes into the cloth, forming a dome shape.
- Steam for about 3–4 minutes until fluffy.
- Turn the Yake Yake out onto a plate. It should appear as a soft, cake-like dome.
- Pair with tilapia, hot pepper, and sliced onions for a complete, authentic Ghanaian meal.
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