Friday, March 29, 2024 | Ramadan 18, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Ban marketing of unhealthy foods

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Muscat: By being held accountable for 70 per cent of the deaths worldwide, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are said to impede social and economic development by impacting the productive individuals.


Seven of ten people in the world die of either cancer, heart diseases, lung diseases, diabetes, and mental conditions. This was revealed at the World Health Organization's Global Meeting in Oman held at Kempinski hotel in Muscat.  WHO pointed out that NCDs are responsible for the premature death of up to 15 million people between the ages of 30 and 70 years. WHO, which has entered into a partnership with Oman, the host for its Global Meeting in Muscat, seeks to accelerate progress on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 3.4 on NCDs and Mental Health.


WHO said that despite many proven interventions and commitments to combat NCDs,  the pace of progress has been slow and uneven. "Low-cost solutions approved by the organization can save millions of lives and achieve economic growth."


To reduce exposure to tobacco and unhealthy foods and drinks, WHO solutions include banning the marketing and imposing taxes on these products, apart from providing access to basic health services for all groups of society. According to WHO, "Children don’t consume food because it’s good. They consume because of advertising. Sugar is the biggest poison of the 21st Century."


The WHO meeting includes interaction with directors of the NCD programs from participating countries where cardiovascular diseases, lung diseases, cancers, and diabetes are a cause for a large number of premature deaths.


The objectives of the Global Meeting are to strengthen the capacity of national NCD directors and managers to implement a set of priority interventions that will put their countries on a sustainable path to attain SDG target 3.4 on NCDs and mental health by 2030.“We can save eight 8mn 2030 globally by adopting WHO guidelines on tackling NCDs” said Akjemal Magtymova, WHO representative in her speech.


She stressed that the concept of strengthening primary health care for universal health coverage is an essential element to tackle non-communicable diseases because prevention as treatment is equally important. She said, “Oman with its state-of-the-art primary health care services package provides integrated, affordable care near residential communities. The government adopts population-based policies to ensure healthy environments to reduce risk factors for non-communicable diseases.”


Dr Ahmed Salim Saif al Mandhari, WHO director for Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa, said, “Along with all the human misery they cause, NCDs also impede social and economic development. They affect economically productive individuals, impoverish families, and impose a heavy burden on health systems and national economies.” He added, “People who suffer from non-communicable diseases and mental disorders are not often covered by the insurance, so they have to pay for the expenses of care they need and do not get enough healthcare services.”


Dr. Ali bin Talib al Hinai, Undersecretary, Ministry of Health for Planning Affairs, said, that saving lives from early deaths caused by non-communicable diseases is an achievable goal. In 2015, the world set an ambitious target to by 2030, reduce by one-third premature mortality from NCDs through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and wellbeing” (SDG target 3.4). In 2018, Heads of State and Government committed to putting their countries on a sustainable path to attain this target.


WHO has developed a new strategic plan to address the triple billion targets. NCDs and mental health are relevant to all three: progress towards universal health coverage will increase access to services to prevent, diagnose and treat NCDs, without out-of-pocket expenses impoverishing people; protecting people from the impact of health emergencies includes continuity of care for people who suffer from NCDs and mental health conditions, and improving health and well-being requires intensified action against the world’s leading causes of death and disease.


 


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