Editorial | Concerted effort for healthy Jamaica

With the raft of issues, domestic and global, competing for people’s attention, March’s observance as ‘Nutrition Month’ hasn’t received the focus it clearly deserves.

That Jamaicans should have access to healthy and nutritious foods at affordable prices ought to be more than a slogan. Healthy eating affects the long-term health of the population, which impacts a swathe of factors that contribute to productivity and the performance of the national economy. But large segments of the island’s population, particularly schoolchildren, don’t eat healthily.

Indeed, a study by the Heart Foundation of Jamaica found that nearly seven in 10, or more than 69 per cent, of adolescents consume carbonated drinks every day, and that approximately two-thirds (66 per cent) eat fast food most days of the week.

Further, it is estimated that, on any given day, between a quarter and a third (25 and 33 per cent) of children go to school hungry while others rely heavily on sugary drinks and low-nutrient snacks to feed themselves.

The consequences are many, several with long-term effects. For instance, hungry children can’t effectively concentrate on what is being taught. Additionally, an absence of good appropriate nutrition affects brain development. The combined impact, impaired learning. Lower academic performance is also linked to behavioural challenges in classrooms.

OVERWEIGHT

Further, one in three Jamaican children is overweight. The Heart Foundation reported that obesity in boys doubled from 5.3 per cent in 2010 to 10.3 per cent in 2017, while it increased from 6.7 per cent to 9.9 per cent in girls.

The Global Nutrition Report estimates that, in Jamaica, 36.9 per cent of adult (aged 18 years and over) women and 18.1 per cent of adult men are living with obesity. Jamaica’s obesity prevalence is higher than the regional average. Obese children and adults are prime candidates for diabetes and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The health ministry has allocated, for the 2026/2027 financial year, J$4 billion, for the treatment and care of NCDs. This is a considerable strain on the exchequer.

It is against this backdrop that The Gleaner supports government initiatives like Jamaica Moves that promote better diet and physical activity among adults and students, as well the National School Nutrition Policy, which was tabled last year May by the education minister, Dr. Dana Morris Dixon. That policy is aimed at ensuring that students have access to safe, nutritious foods while limiting the sale and promotion of sugary drinks and ultra-processed products in schools.

CONSISTENT ENFORCEMENT

However, as we noted then, the policy’s success will depend on consistent enforcement, and actively regulating what is sold on school premises. In this regard, the government’s proposed locally produced tomato juice programme for schools, which Agriculture Minister Floyd Green says is now undergoing formulation and taste-testing among students, is a welcome development.

The recently announced special consumption tax on sweetened beverages is also a step into the right direction, but might not prove as effective a deterrent as is hoped. Taxing sugar content in drinks, rather than a tax based merely on the volume of drinks in a can or bottle, may be worth considering. Accessibility to appealing alternatives to sugary beverages should also be promoted.

Consumers should also have clear, easily understood information on the goods they purchase and consume. In that regard, front-of-package warning labels (FOPWL), as promoted by health and civil society groups, remains an eminent sensible idea. Consumers would be told directly, and clearly, whether the products they are about to buy are high in sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats. Studies have shown that these are among the most effective tools for reducing unhealthy consumption.

The bottom line: a strong, coordinated, multi-pronged response is critical to addressing the matter of improving the consumption of nutritious foods and keeping Jamaicans, including children, healthy. The returns are not only a healthier population. That also translates to the broader national economy, which is likely to become more productive and richer.