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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates / The Khaleej Times / June 1, 2009
MUSCAT – Oman’s health authorities are mounting a countrywide campaign to curb escalating incidence of the so-called ‘lifestyle’ diseases, notably obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cardio-vascular disorders, by releasing, for the first time, a healthy eating manual to improve citizens’ nutritional habits.
Titled
‘The Omani Guide to Healthy Eating’, the handbook is based on the World Health Organisation’s ‘Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity
and Health’ and contains 10 key
messages on healthy eating practices. Visually represented by the ‘Omani Healthy Plate’, the guide has been
produced by the Health Ministry’s Department of Nutrition in collaboration with WHO’s Muscat office.
The guidelines, targeted at the general population above the age of two years, focus on adequate nutrition, prevention of obesity and chronic diseases including diabetes, hypertension and hyper-lipidemia through diet and physical activity.
Director of the Nutrition Department
Prof. Dr. Deena Hamza Alasfoor said the
ministry felt the need to draw up the guidelines because “lifestyles in the Sultanate are undergoing rapid
changes. Current needs demand a modern lifestyle that could necessitate changes in food habits.”
However, unhealthy food choices, along with the lack of physical activity, may lead to “health hazards in our community, especially young Omanis living life on the fast track,” she added. Dr Alasfoor was addressing news conference here on Saturday together with Dr Ali Jaffar Mohammed, Health Affairs Advisor at the ministry, and the Oman representatives of WHO and Unicef to mark the launch of the booklet.
Studies have shown that more than 40 per cent of Omanis are overweight or obese, and a recent survey by the Sultan Qaboos University indicated that
cardiac illnesses account for about 10 per cent of all deaths in adults aged between 45 and 60 years and 31 per cent in those above 60 years in the country.
Dr Mohammed said one of the most important health issues confronting public health authorities in Oman at present related to epidemiological transition which posed “a double burden of disease. On one side of the spectrum we continue to fight malnutrition and micronutrients deficiencies in our community and on the other, obesity and chronic diseases are on the rise”.
Dr. Ali Jaffer Mohammad
Life in the fast lane for young Omanis, he pointed out, meant that “uninformed food choices” dominated Omani tables and “lesser activity was being carried out as more time is spent in offices and in front of the TV screens… Public Health and preventive interventions are increasingly becoming an important cornerstone of health services in Oman and all over the world.” The new manual, Dr Mohammed said, was the result of four years of work by several experts.
The guide is primarily meant for people who educate others about eating for good health - primary and high school health and classroom teachers, technical colleges and institutions, hospitality and culinary schools and colleges as well as university lectures.
Dr Alasfoor said the book will also be distributed to health educators, community health support group members, community welfare and social workers, fitness leaders and community nurses and general practitioners, nutritionists, dieticians and nurses.
She added that Omani Health Plate would be used as a tool by health
and education professionals and the food industry to promote good nutrition in their work. The aim is to
encourage the consumption of a variety of foods from each of six food groups – grains, fruits, meat and alternatives, pulses, milk and dairy products and
fats and oils – every day “in proportions that are consistent with the Omani Guide to Healthy Eating.”
The guide offers graphical information about the quantity and kinds of foods to choose each day and contains specific recommendations for particular groups of people including pregnant and lactating mothers, the elderly, growing-up children and others.
The guideline is an essential part of efforts to promote the health of Omanis to the highest possible level, Dr Jihan Tawila, the WHO representative, said, adding, “Good nutrition is one of the basics to fight and help to avoid chronic diseases very well.”
Globalisation and open trade policies in the past decades have brought about a dramatic change in the Omani diet with high fat and processed foods finding their way into meals and snacking on junk food emerging as one of the most common dietary habits among children, according to official studies.
The change has led to an increase in the prevalence of obesity. “The food based dietary guidelines,” Dr Alasfoor said, “are developed to provide dietary advice and when followed can help prevent of obesity and chronic diseases.”
ravindranath@khaleejtimes.com
Copyright © 2009 Khaleej Times
Director of the Nutrition Department Prof. Dr. Deena Hamza Alasfoor said the
ministry felt the need to draw up the guidelines because “lifestyles in the Sultanate are undergoing rapid
changes. Current needs demand a modern lifestyle that could necessitate changes in food habits.”
However, unhealthy food choices, along with the lack of physical activity, may lead to “health hazards in our community, especially young Omanis living life on the fast track,” she added. Dr Alasfoor was addressing news conference here on Saturday together with Dr Ali Jaffar Mohammed, Health Affairs Advisor at the ministry, and the Oman representatives of WHO and Unicef to mark the launch of the booklet.
Studies have shown that more than 40 per cent of Omanis are overweight or obese, and a recent survey by the Sultan Qaboos University indicated that cardiac illnesses account for about 10 per cent of all deaths in adults aged between 45 and 60 years and 31 per cent in those above 60 years in the country.
Dr Mohammed said one of the most important health issues confronting public health authorities in Oman at present related to epidemiological transition which posed “a double burden of disease. On one side of the spectrum we continue to fight malnutrition and micronutrients deficiencies in our community and on the other, obesity and chronic diseases are on the rise”.
Dr. Ali Jaffer Mohammad
Life in the fast lane for young Omanis, he pointed out, meant that “uninformed food choices” dominated Omani tables and “lesser activity was being carried out as more time is spent in offices and in front of the TV screens… Public Health and preventive interventions are increasingly becoming an important cornerstone of health services in Oman and all over the world.” The new manual, Dr Mohammed said, was the result of four years of work by several experts.
The guide is primarily meant for people who educate others about eating for good health - primary and high school health and classroom teachers, technical colleges and institutions, hospitality and culinary schools and colleges as well as university lectures.
Dr Alasfoor said the book will also be distributed to health educators, community health support group members, community welfare and social workers, fitness leaders and community nurses and general practitioners, nutritionists, dieticians and nurses.
She added that Omani Health Plate would be used as a tool by health
and education professionals and the food industry to promote good nutrition in their work. The aim is to
encourage the consumption of a variety of foods from each of six food groups – grains, fruits, meat and alternatives, pulses, milk and dairy products and
fats and oils – every day “in proportions that are consistent with the Omani Guide to Healthy Eating.”
The guide offers graphical information about the quantity and kinds of foods to choose each day and contains specific recommendations for particular groups of people including pregnant and lactating mothers, the elderly, growing-up children and others.
The guideline is an essential part of efforts to promote the health of Omanis to the highest possible level, Dr Jihan Tawila, the WHO representative, said, adding, “Good nutrition is one of the basics to fight and help to avoid chronic diseases very well.”
Globalisation and open trade policies in the past decades have brought about a dramatic change in the Omani diet with high fat and processed foods finding their way into meals and snacking on junk food emerging as one of the most common dietary habits among children, according to official studies.
The change has led to an increase in the prevalence of obesity. “The food based dietary guidelines,” Dr Alasfoor said, “are developed to provide dietary advice and when followed can help prevent of obesity and chronic diseases.”
ravindranath@khaleejtimes.com
Copyright © 2009 Khaleej Times
