Too much spent on NCDs
The Barbados Government spends as much as $64 million annually on cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Acting Minister of Education, Technological and Vocational Training, Senator Lucille Moe quoting statistics from 2017 compiled by the World Health Organisation, she said that this “extravagant cost” to the Government has resulted from poor dietary habits and unhealthy food choices. She made the point while delivering the feature address at the launch of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Barbados’ mass media campaign dubbed ‘Switch It Up’ at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
“Let me remind you that this figure will increase substantially if the dietary habits of our school aged children are not changed. Barbados like the rest of all other nations pass on their traditions from generation to generation, whether it is religion, different beliefs, different systems, but of course also food. Now such practices are passed on, not necessarily by word of mouth, but by learning through observation while growing up in households… so if we see a certain type of cooking within our homes and certain foods that we eat, often times we will continue that,” she stated.
To that end, she said it will have to be a two-pronged approach to deal with childhood obesity – first reducing or limiting our love for and ingestion of sugar drinks and secondly, she stated, we must engage in more active lifestyles. Her comments came as she lamented that children are nowadays often having sugary drinks and sweet pastries for breakfast and she is adamant that this has to change.
“I would be happier if I saw them having an apple, or a banana, or a piece of fruit,” she stated.
She made the point while indicating that 20, 30 years ago the consumption of soft drinks was not as prevalent as it is today and persons were more inclined to use natural juices from local fruits. Moreover, she added that over the years there has also been a drastic decrease in physical activity and she said that parents need to look at engaging children in more physical activity and perhaps look at limiting the time they spend using electronic devices which help promote the sedentary lifestyle.
“…My appeal to the parents and caregivers of our nation’s children is to be cognisant of the pivotal role that you play in making this campaign a success. We are the adults and must be always aware that the way in which we nurture and nourish our children from infancy will impact on what they do at present or what they will do in the future and how they develop in the future,” she stated. (JRT)