Week 9 Post 1

 The Worst:

1. Nauru
2. Cook Islands
3. Palau 
4. Marshall Islands 
5. Tuvalu
6. Niue
7. Tonga
8. Samoa

Nauru- 90% of the land area in Nauru is covered with phosphate deposits with the majority strip-mined and non-arable. Reliance of processed foods imported from the Australian and British.

Social changes introduced when. islands were under colonial rule. Imported foods. Anemic prevalence. 40% of people have noncommunicable diseases (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension). 

The Best:

1. Vietnam
2. Bangladesh
3. Timor-Leste
4. India
5. Cambodia
6. Nepal
7. Japan
8. Ethiopia

Why is paradise/Pacific Islands so fat? 

"Promotion of traditional foods had fallen by the wayside. They are unable to compete with the glamour and flashiness of imported foods". -Dr. Temo Waganivalu 

Ironic because here healthier/more nutritious foods indicate more money or glamour.

-Less than 20% surveyed reported eating the recommended five plus portions of fruits and vegetables a day. Instead calorie-rich and nutrient-poor foods are more appealing.

 

Major challenge=reinforce nutrition education in schools (same here)

"The challenge is for us to translate knowledge into behavior" -Ateca Kama (Senior Nutritionist @ Fijis National Food and Nutrition Centre)-Kids know what's healthy but why practice it? Is it even available?

Schools teach good nutrition... curriculum, and then sell junk food in the cafeteria because they need the profit. 

Food labels vary as much as the places they come from (Not in English, the most spoken language). Need simple, better sign posts

Need to increase locally frown foods. There have been some campaigns. 

tip: Breastfeed for longer. Build renewed interest and make it fhasionable. The longer babies can have that whole healthy food, the better. Regional support=all islands must be on board and policies should align.

Multifactorial: Regional and sector cooperation

To Fix It:

• Want to do more research on climate change and data on food security so they can be more informed. Pacific islands particularly vulnerable.
• Find the source of rampant vitamin deficiencies which is difficult because survey don't reach enough people. Working with WHO to pool data from different sectors so they can better plan. 
• Problem=they do not have resources or geography to fix it.

Only 16% of population is over 55 due to premature deaths caused primarily by noncommunicable disease. 

Pacific Food Summit- "Finally receiving the attention they rightfully deserve" (?).

www.foodsecurepacific.org

Sometimes I don't understand how things are"getting done" and yet the people don't not or reap the benefits on a national level. How long does it take for change to reach the people? Do the people have that long? 

Vietnam:

2.1% adults obese

Pretty much no children are obese

More concerned about underweight. Those who are overweight have the ability to make a change. 

Why? Standard diets are low in oil and the population has long working hours. 

Malnutrition prevalent but obesity is beginning to rise.