Week 5 Discussion - Nutrition Leadership
What is the importance of nutrition to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)?
Goal 1 is to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger (UN, 2010). Inadequate nutrition or malnutrition contributes to poverty and hunger. Goal 2 is achieving universal primary education(UN, 2010). Educating children about nutrition and supplying a daily nutritious meal, schools play a significant role in combating malnutrition.Goal 3 is to promote gender equality and empower women(UN, 2010). Culturally, women play a key role in family nutrition. Starting with breastfeeding infants, women buy, prepare and distributefood for the entire family.A community’s improved nutrition begins with women’s empowerment. Goal 4 is to reduce child mortality(UN, 2010). More than half (53%) of all deaths in children under five years of age are attributed to malnutrition as the underlying cause because common childhood diseases become fatal in undernourished children (UN, 2010). Goal 5 is to improve maternal health(UN, 2010). Contributing to maternal mortality, ill-health and other complications during pregnancy and childbirth,maternal malnutrition is linked to the health of newborns. Goal 6 is to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases(UN, 2010). Malnutrition makes individuals more susceptible to disease. Nutrition is a key element in the clinical treatment of HIV/AIDS patients. Goal 7 is to ensure environmental sustainability(UN, 2010). Nutrition is dependent on the quality of available foods. Management of environmental pollutants is important in creating a sustainable diet. Goal 8 is to develop a global partnership for development(UN, 2010). To maintain a sustainable food supply, a nation must partner with others to import and export nutritious foods.
What kind of nutrition leadership do we need to make a significant difference for health?
The Director-General of the World Health Organization, Dr.Margaret Chan (2008) declares the need for global leadership in nutrition. Recognizing that proven, cost-effective nutrition interventions already exist, Dr. Chan (2008) calls for leadership to create an innovative deliver system to those with the greatest nutritional deficiencies. Additionally, political leaders need to ensure that policies governing agriculture, food production, and trade are firmly affixedin human nutritional needs and are shaped by health concerns (Chan, 2008).
What steps can be taken to reduce the burden caused by both hunger and overnutrition?
Problems of overnutrition are increasing in countries where hunger is prevalent (WHO, 2004).Obesity is now becoming a marker of poverty (WHO, 2012). Economic inequality is a primary cause of both overnutrition and hunger.While some people have the resources to purchase amounts of food beyond their daily caloric requirements, others cannot meet their recommended caloric intake (WHO, 2004). Around the globe, increasing numbers of poor people are becoming overweight due to the affordability of highly caloric meals, such as fast food and processed foods.
In order to decrease the burden of hunger and overnutrition, the WHO (2012) has initiated public awareness campaigns targeting policy-makers, private sector partners, medical professionals, and the general population. The WHO’s(2012) ‘Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health’ is a framework to combat global overnutrition.
References
Chan, M. (2008). The global nutrition challenge: getting a healthy start. Retrieved on February 2, 2016, from
WHO. (2004)Global strategy on diet, physical activity and health.World Health Assembly.Retrieved on February 2, 2016,
WHO. (2012, May 16). Controlling the global obesity epidemic. Retrieved on February 2, 2016, from
UN. (2010). Nutrition and the MDGs: Accelerating progress towards 2015.Retrieved on February 2, 2016, from