WHO Issues Report Against Worrying Global Trends

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World Health Organization (WHO) urges nutrition interventions against the worrying global trends. 

According to sources, good nutrition is the core factor of health management without which people are at a greater risk of developing health problems. In a recent report, the WHO has urged health services to place nutritional guidelines at the forefront. Reportedly, the top priority for the World Health Organization is to achieve affordable access to primary care across the globe.

A report published by the United Nations (UN) has warned against alarming levels of global hunger while obesity continues to rise simultaneously. According to the report, 821 million chronic cases of undernourished people had been highlighted in 2018 which marks it as a steep increase in number of cases since 2017 – reportedly 811 cases of undernourishment. Based on the report, the UN has pointed out that an estimated 40 million children under the age of five were overweight last year with an increase in “prevalence of obesity” between the last 2 decades alone.

Simultaneously, the WHO has now issued a report of their own urging health service across the globe, to come up with plans to make nutrition a top priority. As rightfully pointed out by Dr. Naoko Yamamoto, Assistant Director-General at the WHO, “nutrition should be positioned as one of the cornerstones of essential health packages” to ensure quality health services and Universal Health Coverage for all. Dr. Yamamoto further points out that there is need for “better food environments” which will help ensure that people adopt a healthier lifestyle as a way of consuming “healthy diets”.

Moreover, the document released by WHO has stressed upon the need for essential health packages, which in turn would enable opportunities of healthcare and guidance related to nutrition at every stage in an individuals life. There is emphasis that nutritional interventions are a must if we wish to tackle the problems pointed out in the UN’s report. Based on the authors’ comments it has been noted that while there is a decrease in stunting, their is an alarming rise in levels of obesity and malnutrition globally. As per the study authors, within adults alone, “462 million are underweight, while 1.9 billion are overweight” and another “600 million [approximately 13%] are obese” from data that has been made available since 2014. The authors have iterated that the problems of obesity, overweight and diabetes in adults “are rising in nearly every region and country”.

According to estimates provided by sources, it is believed that nations investing in nutrition interventions have the capabilities of saving approximately 3.7 million lives by the next five to six years, respectively. Thereby, WHO have set up important global health targets that will include:

  • A 40% reduction in number of young children affected by stunted growth  
  • An approximate 50% reduction of anemia in women of reproductive age
  • To maintain that their is no increase in levels of overweight children

In conclusion, the report effectively argued that the policymakers on international and national level, in both public and private sector must come together to support better policies related to health and nutrition across the globe.

 

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