At first, GERMAS was designated as a daily movement to prevent non-infectious diseases, but during the pandemic, apart from prokes, GERMAS becomes a complement to the people's healthJakarta (ANTARA) - The Healthy Community Movement (Germas) is a complement to the health protocols implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Indonesian Health Ministry.
Director from the Directorate of Health Promotion and Community Empowerment of the Health Ministry Dr Imran Agus Nurali made the statement at a virtual press conference on Wednesday.
"At first, GERMAS was designated as a daily movement to prevent non-infectious diseases, but during the pandemic, apart from prokes, GERMAS becomes a complement to the people's health," Nurali added.
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Nurali later noted that apart from the 5M (wearing mask, washing hands, maintaining distance, reducing mobility, and avoiding crowd) programs, the other health protocols comprised increasing immunity through regular exercise, regular rest, stress control, healthy living, and maintaining a clean environment.
Nurali said that GERMAS has had short- and long-term impacts, especially during the pandemic period in the last two years.
In terms of the short-term effect, by applying GERMAS and strict health protocols, the community can help to curb the spread of COVID-19 since their immune system is strong.
Meanwhile, for the long-term impact, the movement is expected to prevent non-infectious diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension, as well as improve the quality of life.
Nurali deems it important for parents, the government, and other related parties to actively promote awareness among members of the younger generation to start following a healthy, balanced, and nutritious lifestyle and diet.
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"The young generation nowadays will become the nation's leaders in the demographic bonus. The number of people in the productive age will be very large in the following years. They need to take care of themselves since younger age," he reminded.
In a bid to increase the understanding of nutritionally balanced food, Nurali suggested parents to introduce the "Isi Piringku" or "my plate meals" guidelines from the Ministry of Health.
The rules for food distribution on the guideline are half the plate should contain vegetables and fruits of various types and colors.
The one-third of the half portion should be filled with fruits, while vegetables should constitute two-thirds of that portion.
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Translator: Arnidhya N Z, Resinta S
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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