The health of children attending various primary and high schools in Habiganj is at risk, as they regularly consume unhealthy and unhygienic street foods.
The students consume spicy street foods, such as puffed rice mixed with spices, oil, and onions, fuchka, and chanachur mix, which are local street foods prepared roadside in extremely unhygienic conditions.
The ingredients used in these street foods are unhealthy as well. Moreover, old ingredients are used in these street foods which increase the health risk of these children all the more.
Experts said that children, especially at a young and developing age, require nutritious and balanced meals to support their growth and overall well-being. Consuming unhygienic street food, which is often laden with harmful ingredients like excess oil, artificial flavors, and unregulated additives, poses significant health risks. Not only do these foods harm their immediate health, but they also affect their appetite, leading many children to feel full or lethargic after eating them. As a result, they often skip their proper meals when they return home, depriving their bodies of the essential nutrients they need for proper development.
Over time, this pattern of unhealthy eating can have serious long-term consequences, including stunted growth, weakened immune systems, and poor academic performance due to lack of energy and focus. Additionally, regular consumption of such foods can strain the digestive system, gradually weakening its ability to process and absorb nutrients. This can lead to digestive disorders, malnutrition, and other chronic health issues that may persist into adulthood, affecting their overall quality of life.
On Wednesday, just a few minutes after classes ended at Habiganj Government High School, several young students were seen eating these unhygienic street foods outside the main gate as they headed home. Most of them had gone the whole day without food, only to eat these street foods in the afternoon before returning home.
Khalilur Rahman Arif, a seventh-grade student said that he came to school on an empty stomach at 12:00pm. He felt hungry well before the end of the school day, so he bought and ate chanachur.
Uchchhash Pal, a sixth-grade student from Chirakandi area, ate chotpoti from a roadside stall for similar reasons before heading home.
Chanachur seller Ranjan Das said that he sells chanachur to at least 200 students daily from various schools. While talking, he prepared chanachur for a few more students who were waiting, with several young children still gathered around him.
According to locals, a significant portion of these over five lakh students, who are studying in various schools of the district, eat unhygienic street food daily, which is putting them at risk of long-term health issues.
The head teacher of Habiganj Government High School, Sheikh Alfaz Uddin, said that vendors gather at the school gate during the start and end of classes. Despite numerous efforts, they cannot be removed. Children and teenagers often fall ill after consuming these foods and are sent home due to sickness.
Dr Debashish Das, Medical Officer at Habiganj 250-Bed District Sadar Hospital, said that children are bound to get sick if they consume these foods. They use burnt oil and ingredients from open markets, and eating food near garbage dumps is extremely harmful to health, especially on an empty stomach in the afternoon. To protect children’s health, it is crucial to stop the consumption of these foods.
The district education department attributes students' addiction to these foods to the discontinuation of mid-day meals at the secondary level, the lack of lunchboxes from home, and parental negligence.
Secondary Education Officer Mohammad Ruhullah said that since the COVID-19 pandemic, the mid-day meal program has not been regularly resumed in schools. Many students are also not provided with food from home, which leads them to consume unhealthy snacks.
It is mentionable that on November 23 in 2023, 17 students of Adarsha School in Baniachong upazila suddenly became ill and they had to be hospitalized. Later, it was found out that all of them attended school on empty stomach.
