Supplemental Meals Restore Nutrition and Health in Afghanistan

“After providing XANGO meal packs to patients, our doctors and nurses began to report marked health improvements among patients of all ages”
—Dr. Mark ScoffieldNine-year-old Shaima was brought to Afshar Hospital in Afghanistan, suffering from fever, cough and severe weight loss.  “On examination, Shaima was very pale and emaciated,” recalls Dr. Muhammad Amin, a pediatrician at Afshar Hospital.  After diagnosing Shaima with anemia and pulmonary tuberculosis, Afshar Hospital provided medical treatment and nutritional support, using calorie-dense XANGO meal packs, donated by AmeriCares.Shaima’s health began to improve immediately. Within just a few weeks, her color, weight and activity level returned to normal.“The meal packs have improved the nutrition and health of thousands of hospital patients and refugees in Afghanistan and have proven to be an extremely beneficial product in our constant battle against malnutrition in and around Kabul,” explained Dr. Mark Scoffield, MD, co-founder of Afshar hospital.“After providing XANGO meal packs to patients, our doctors and nurses began to report marked health improvements among patients of all ages,” said Dr. Scoffield. “Young, malnourished children like Shaima made critical weight gains and responded more rapidly to medical treatments; expectant women and nursing mothers began to feel stronger;  and we even saw weight gain among cancer patients that were unable to eat any foods.”For the past two years, AmeriCares has delivered 15,000 meal packs to Kabul, Afghanistan, with total value of approximately $65,000.  AmeriCares supports Afshar Hospital through a partnership with American Medical Overseas Relief (AMOR), a California-based non-profit, non-governmental institution.XANGO has partnered with AmeriCares to deliver meal packs where they are most needed, in countries with high levels of malnutrition, including Afghanistan, Cambodia, El Salvador, Guatemala,  Somalia, Malawi, Mexico, Nicaragua and the Philippines.

The Facts

• Hunger and malnutrition are still the number one risks to health worldwide – greater than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.
• Malnourished children and adults have a reduced ability to resist infection, making them less likely to survive common diseases such as malaria, measles, pneumonia and diarrhea.
• Globally, nearly one person in seven faces chronic hunger, and one in three children is underweight.
• Poor nutrition plays a role in at least half of the 10.9 million child deaths each year.

Donate Now