If you are using Internet Explorer, press F11 for a full-screen view. One result of the poor living conditions is that many families only have enough food for one meal a day. The limitation of eating only rice and beans results in vitamin deficiencies which are evident in the skinny, bowed legs, knobby knees, coarse hair, and short stature. Teachers report that students were actually fainting in school because they had not eaten. 3900 children are being fed each day at 40 different Rainbow Network feeding centers.
Food is cooked by parents under open-air pavilions.
The feeding centers are often at schools and operate 6 days a week, providing a noon meal. The meals are planned each month to complement their home diet of rice and beans in order to provide the needed nutrients for growing children. A difference is easily seen in the communities where feeding programs have been established, yet some mental and physical growth can never be replaced. Most amazing is how easily the situation is changed for a child.