Who Pays in the Obesity Battle?
March 29, 2004
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- According to a New Zealand researcher, intensive lobbying from the U.S. food industry pressures the adoption of a worldwide strategy that recommends reductions in fat, salt and sugar content and increased physical activity.
In a joint report published last year, experts from the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations suggested added sugars should be restricted to less than 10 percent total energy.
This provides further justification for a guideline to restrict sugar intake that is already in place in more than 20 countries, according to article author Dr. Jim Mann. Authors of the WHO/UN report concluded sufficient evidence shows sucrose and other free sugars contribute to the global epidemic of obesity.
Mann, from the University of Otago, New Zealand, writes food industries and some governments make claims that evidence on which the recommendations are based is insufficient and other authoritative reports do not concur.
Writers of an accompanying editorial from The Lancet agree that the WHO’s Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health is a start toward combating the obesity epidemic. One thing the strategy does not address, however, is the high cost of eating healthy. The authors conclude, “As long as a meal of grilled chicken, broccoli, and fresh fruit costs more and is less convenient than a burger and fries or a peanut butter sandwich, then the battle against obesity will be lost.”
Editorial authors cite the medical costs attributable to obesity in the United States last year alone were $75 billion. This cost amounts to $175 each year for every U.S. taxpayer, who pays for obesity-related illness including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and gallbladder disease.
SOURCE: The Lancet, 2004;363:1068-1070, 33
This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, who offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, go to: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.