Page 56 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 16

Health & Healing

tion. ‘Hidden hunger’ is due to diets While international measures
lacking essential micro-nutrients — suggest that wasting, stunting
vitamins, minerals, trace elements and underweight among children
— vital for the body to develop and are declining all too slowly, child
function well. under-nutrition remains high, with
national shares still rising in many,
Insufficient vitamin A, iron, calcium including middle income countries.
and zinc seem to be the major mi-
cro-nutrient deficiencies of public Child stunting not only adversely
health importance. All too many effects children’s physical devel-
people are anaemic, with especially opment, but also their cognitive
serious consequences for women of development. How can societies
reproductive age. and economies progress if future
Jomo Kwame Sundaram was Assistant Secre-
tary-General for Economic Development in the generations continue to be handi-
UN Department of Economic and Social Af- In many countries, iodine deficien- capped from the outset.
fairs (DESA), (Honorary) Research Coordinator cies have been successfully tackled
for the G24 Intergovernmental Group on Inter- by iodizing salt, while vitamin A is Non-communicable diseases
national Monetary Affairs and Development and typically tackled with costly sup- The crises of obesity, diabetes and
Assistant Director-General and Coordinator for plements for children under five. other diet-related NCDs in middle
Economic and Social Development at the FAO. Such hidden hunger is usually better income countries remains alarming,
In 2007, he was awarded the Wassily Leontief addressed by dietary diversity to with NCDs among the leading caus-
Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic consume food with the needed es of premature death and disability.
Thought. Jomo has authored over 35 mono-
graphs, edited over 50 books and translated 12 micro-nutrients. The prevalence of overweight, obe-
volumes besides writing many academic papers sity, diabetes and related morbidities
and articles for the media. Bio-fortification can help, but for has increased in most countries.
this to work well, close collabora-
tion is needed between nutritionists Overweight and obesity are risk
being able to gain sufficient nour- and dieticians on the one hand, and factors for NCDs, such as diabetes,
ishment from food due to gastro- scientists working to improve food cardiovascular diseases and cancers,
intestinal diseases, typically due to crops and animal-source foods on which reduce the quality of life and
poor sanitation and hygiene. the other. productivity, unnecessarily rais-

ing health costs, both private and
Although hunger and starvation Child under-nutrition public.
have reportedly been declining Most parents are not aware that the
in recent decades, dietary energy ‘first 1000 days’, from conception Often, people are not aware of the
undernourishment has been falling until the child is two, is most critical consequences of eating much more
more slowly than poverty although for child development. Maternal carbohydrates, calories or ‘dietary
the poverty line is supposedly and infant malnutrition start during energy’ than they normally use or
defined by an income level to avoid pregnancy, especially with pregnant need. Over-eating — often wrongly
hunger. mothers suffering micro-nutrient termed over-nutrition or over-nour-
deficiencies or diet-related NCDs. ishment — often leads to diet-re-
The nutrition situation in the world lated NCDs and their consequences.
remains worrying as other manifes- We can and must do much more
tations of malnutrition — includ- to enable and promote ‘exclusive Various non-infectious diseases are
ing stunting, obesity, diabetes and breastfeeding’ for the first six due to what we have eaten or drunk
anaemia — have been growing, or months of every child’s life. Various in excess, especially processed
declining slowly at best, according work and maternity leave arrange- sugars. Excessive consumption of
to available official evidence.
ments as well as childcare facilities ‘starchy’ foods or carbohydrates
should be made available to enable raises blood sugar levels which
Micronutrient deficiencies widespread adoption of such prac- cause diabetes and other problems
Micro-nutrient deficiencies threaten tices. including excessive weight gain.
human health and wellbeing, but Thus, sugar ‘addiction’ directly
rarely get much public policy atten-

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