TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo highlighted a story about a mother giving her seven-month-old baby instant milk coffee in Gowa, South Sulawesi, which has recently gone viral on social media.

This case, he opined, could happen due to a lack of the parents’ knowledge about nutrition for children.

“I’ve heard about a viral story that a 7-month-old baby who was given an instant milk coffee drink by the mother. What may be on her mind, it’s milk. She wanted to give her kid milk. Be careful about this,” said the President in a speech when opening the national meeting of the Population and Family Planning Board (BKKBN) in East Jakarta, Wednesday, January 25, 2023.

Based on the report he received, Jokowi said the parents let their kid drink instant milk coffee because the kid likes it. However, he warned them that the physical body of a baby could not endure the effect of such a beverage.

“The mother said milk coffee is beneficial [for the baby] because it contains milk. Be careful. A child’s kidney and heart are not strong enough [to endure the effect of coffee],” he underlined.

The state head thus ordered BKKBN to intensify counseling regarding nutrition for children. Jokowi emphasized that the quality of a family is key for the country to compete with other countries.

A mother was slammed for giving her baby a cup of instant milk coffee after the video went viral on social media. The mother claimed it was not harmful since the drink contained milk. Gowa Police then immediately launched an act and questioned the mother.

M JULNIS FIRMANSYAH

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News