Junk Foods Must be Taxed to Prevent Obesity: UN Official
Unhealthy food does more harm to the body than smoking tobacco and must face heavy tax regulation, according to a United Nations expert.
Obesity is a serious risk factor for fatal diseases like cancer, stroke, diabetes and cardiovascular problems . On Monday, at the World Health Organization's (WHO) 10th annual summit in Geneva, Olivier De Schutter, a Belgian professor, issued a statement urging a strict regulation on the food industry to curb the worldwide incidence of obesity.
"Unhealthy diets are now a greater threat to global health than tobacco. Just as the world came together to regulate the risks of tobacco, a bold framework convention on adequate diets must now be agreed," said professor De Schutter, reports the Reuters news.
Professor De Schutter says new rules must focus on controlling salt, saturated fat and sugar levels in processed foods and commercially sold snacks by imposing a tax on manufacturers who do not adhere to the policy.
Other agencies like World Obesity Federation and Consumers International also recommend government and regulatory authorities to monitor advertisements and marketing strategies of fatty and unhealthy junk. They plan on introducing messages and pictures of health hazards of obesity on the labels of food products similar to warnings printed on cigarette packets that is practiced since 2011, reports the Daily Mail.
In addition, the reports advocate on price reduction for food with high nutritive values to ensure easy access and affordability to consumers by promoting healthy eating habits and lifestyle.
"The scale of the impact of unhealthy food on consumer health is comparable to the impact of cigarettes. The food and beverage industry has dragged its feet on meaningful change and governments have felt unable or unwilling to act," said Amanda Long, director general of Consumers International.
"The only answer remaining for the global community is a framework convention and we urge governments to seriously consider our recommendations for achieving that.If they do not, we risk decades of obstruction from industry and a repeat of the catastrophic global health crisis caused by smoking," reports the Daily Mail.
This report was drafted and presented in Paris earlier in 2008 by the International Federation on Human Rights.
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