By: Nicholas Osei-Wusu
Research by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST), has revealed that Ghana is becoming obesogenic, meaning that, the food environment is promoting obesity among an appreciable proportion of the population.
This is being linked to the increasing cases of diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular illnesses which are among the top five causes of hospitalization and deaths in the country.
A Professor of Public Health at the KNUST, Professor Reginald Annan who disclosed this at a symposium in Kumasi, the Ashanti regional capital has therefore, called for the promulgation of a national regulatory policy that would compel producers and manufacturers of canned and bottled foods and drinks to indicate in the labels of their packaging materials showing health implications when consuming such products to inform responsible choices.
A society becomes obesogenic when the food environment exposes a substantial proportion of its population to Non-Communicable Diseases.
The research indicated that the sale and distribution of sugar, sweetened, carbonated, and salty food products and drinks which has saturated the local retail market has made access and consumption of such products easily accessible and affordable without any national policy compelling manufacturers to warn consumers of the health consequences when one consume those food and drinks.
Public health experts have linked the high burden of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as hypertension commonly called BP, diabetes, and heart diseases which rank among the top 10 causes of hospitalization and mortalities in Ghana to a significant portion of the national population being either overweight or obese.
According to the Ghana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, (GAND), it has become imperative for all concerned stakeholders to pool resources to push for the promulgation of a national regulatory policy to ensure that, Ghana does not slide into an obesogenic society, a situation that could worsen the already worrying rising cases of NCDs.
“An Obesogenic food environment is an environment that promotes the consumption and access to Obesogenic foods, foods that lead to obesity and usually, they’re cheaper, there are excess calories so people consume them.
There’s been a time in Ghana when the cost of a bottle of water was more expensive than the same size as a carbonated drink. If water is 3 Cedis and a carbonated drink is 1.20 Pesewas for the same volume, so you should agree with me that the food environment is Obesogenic,” Prof Annan said.
Speaking at a day’s symposium as part of advocacy for a national action plan on the situation, the Secretary of GAND, Joseph Danquah, said the Academy is committed to supporting any action plan aimed at ensuring accountability within the food industry while protecting consumers.
“At the Ghana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, we’re very much dedicated to the promotion of science-nutrition policies that protect public health empower consumers, and enhance food industry accountability.
Through collaborations like this, we aim to advocate for mandatory Front-Of-Package Warning Label (FOPWL) regulations in Ghana,” he assured.
The Country Director of SEND-Ghana, Madam Harriet Nuamah, stressed that, with the worrying trend in NCDs in the country, there is an urgent need for the enactment of an enforceable policy on Front of Package Warning Labeling to enable unsuspecting canned food, sugar, sweetened and carbonated drink consumers to make an informed decision on what they patronize.
The symposium in Kumasi was organized by the Ghana Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in partnership with the College of Sciences of the KNUST, SEND Ghana with the support of the Ghana Health Service and the Food and Drugs Authority as a platform for key stakeholders in academia, public health, food scientists, policy and industry to discuss and explore innovative strategies for the promulgation of Front of Package Warning Labels in Ghana.
