Unhealthy diet dangerous as smoking

WHO warns against unhealthy diet

05/20/2014

According to UN experts, poor nutrition is becoming an ever greater health risk for many people. The unhealthy eating habits would have to be fought, according to an expert as well as smoking.

Poor nutrition is becoming an ever greater health risk
According to experts of the UN, poor nutrition worldwide is becoming an ever greater health risk for many people. While hunger and malnutrition still prevail in many countries around the world, diseases have been a major problem elsewhere, with too many unhealthy foods to favor. The director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), Margaret Chan, warned on Monday according to a report by the dpa news agency in Geneva: „Part of the world literally eats itself to death.“ As she said at the opening of the 67th World Health Assembly, it also causes huge treatment costs.

Special Commission for the Control of Childhood Obesity
She criticized that still food and beverages with high sugar content are ubiquitous, convenient and cheap. In particular, the increase in obesity among children is worrying. The WHO chief announced the creation of a special commission to combat childhood obesity. By the beginning of 2015, experts should make recommendations. The UN Special Envoy for the Right to Food, Olivier De Schutter, said that one „global convention for the protection and promotion of healthy nutrition“ necessary. In addition, in his opinion, the bad eating habits would have to be combated just as vigorously as nicotine abuse.

Polio on the rise
At the highest body of the WHO, representatives from more than 190 countries will, inter alia, discuss measures against the spread of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease or obesity until 24 May. Many health problems are favored or even caused by unhealthy diets. According to Chans, the re-emergence of polio is one of the biggest problems WHO is currently facing. Just recently, the WHO warned that polio is on the rise again, although the virus almost disappeared worldwide two years ago. Armed conflicts and extremist groups were among the main reasons vaccinations in many countries hindered or completely prevented vaccination. Polio could be spread internationally again without resolute countermeasures, and thus the goal of eradicating poliomyelitis by 2018 could be missed. (Sb)