A third of the poorest countries in the world are dealing with high levels of obesity as well as under-nourishment, which leaves people too thin, according to a report in The Lancet.<\/p>\n
It says the problem is caused by global access to ultra-processed foods, and people exercising less.<\/p>\n
The authors are calling for changes to the “modern food system” which they believe to be driving it.<\/p>\n
Countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are most affected.<\/p>\n
The report estimates that nearly 2.3 billion children and adults on the planet are overweight, and more than 150 million children have stunted growth.<\/p>\n
And many low and middle-income countries are facing these two issues at once – known as the ‘double burden of malnutrition’.<\/p>\n
This means that 20% of people are overweight, 30% of children under four are not growing properly, and 20% of women are classified as thin.<\/p>\n
Communities and families can be affected by both forms of malnutrition, as well as individual people at different points in their lives, the report says.<\/p>\n
According to the report, 45 out of 123 countries were affected by the burden in the 1990s, and 48 out of 126 countries in the 2010s.<\/p>\n
By the 2010s, 14 countries with some of the lowest incomes in the world had developed this ‘double problem’ since the 1990s.<\/p>\n
The report authors say action should be taken by governments, the United Nations and academics to address the problem, and it points the finger at changing diets.<\/p>\n
The way people eat, drink and move is changing. Increasing numbers of supermarkets, easy availability of less nutritious food, as well as a decrease in physical activity, are leading to more people becoming overweight.<\/p>\n
And these changes are affecting low and middle-income countries, as well as high-income ones.<\/p>\n
Although stunted growth of children in many countries is becoming less frequent, eating ultra-processed foods early in life is linked to poor growth.<\/p>\n
“We are facing a new nutrition reality,” says lead author Dr Francesco Branca, director of the department of nutrition for health and development at the World Health Organization.<\/p>\n
“We can no longer characterise countries as low-income and undernourished, or high-income and only concerned with obesity.<\/p>\n
“All forms of malnutrition have a common denominator – food systems that fail to provide all people with healthy, safe, affordable, and sustainable diets.”<\/p>\n
Dr Branca said changing this needed changes in food systems – from production and processing, through trade and distribution, pricing, marketing, and labelling, to consumption and waste.<\/p>\n
“All relevant policies and investments must be radically re-examined,” he said.
\nHigh-quality diets reduce the risk of malnutrition by encouraging healthy growth, development, and the body’s protection against diseases throughout life.<\/p>\n
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