Food as Medicine for Palestine's PKU Kids

For Phenylketonuria (PKU) patients, even the smallest amount of protein can cause permanent brain damage. With specialized medical food still out of their reach, fresh vegetables and fruits remain their only safe source of nutrition. Thanks to your generosity, Rebuilding Alliance has now completed the seventh round of fruit and vegetable parcels, reaching 194 registered PKU patients across Gaza. These deliveries have provided not only essential nutrition but also stability and hope for families living through unimaginable hardship.

Under  the guidance of nutritionist, Dr Hamouda, each parcel was carefully packed with nourishing items such as potatoes, cucumbers, onions, avocados, and apples for patients with Phenylketonuria (PKU).

For PKU families, these food parcels are a lifeline. 

In Khan Younis, Mohammad’s family is enduring a similar struggle. His three daughters — Menna (20), Shahd (16), and Donia (12) — all have PKU. Their home in Gaza City was completely destroyed in an airstrike, killing their eldest brother and leaving the rest of the family displaced in Al-Mawasi with no tent or shelter. Donia was injured by shrapnel. Without the medical formula, the girls’ health is worsening, and they have grown weaker as the family survives only on unsafe food distributions. “We escaped with nothing but the clothes we were wearing,” their father shared. The family has no resources to buy even fresh vegetables and fruits for the girls. Only through your support can they receive the proper food they need.

Hussam, a boy with PKU, has also seen his condition decline since being displaced to Al-Mawasi. Unable to walk, he now needs a wheelchair. His brother said they don't have any source of income to buy the vegetables and fruits that Hussam needs. The lack of care and nutrition has left him extremely weak, with swollen eyes and frequent outbursts from pain and frustration. Hussam received a food parcel with your support. 

These are just a few of the many families our team continues to reach with your support. Each parcel provides not just food, but relief and hope to parents struggling to keep their children alive through one of the hardest times in Gaza’s history.

Now that the war has finally come to an end, families can spend nights in relative safety once again. Prices have begun to drop slightly, but the need remains immense — particularly for children with PKU, whose survival depends on a diet that remains difficult to find and afford.

We are preparing the eighth round of PKU vegetable parcels, ensuring these vulnerable children continue to receive the food they need to stay safe, nourished, and protected from irreversible brain damage. Your continued support helps us deliver the next food parcel.

Thank you for all that you do for PKU patients in Gaza.