AMMAN — In
collaboration with the
World Health Organization (WHO), the Ministry of Health
launched the 2023–2030 National Nutrition Strategy and its executive framework
on Sunday with the goal of improving the nutritional status for all societal
segments, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.
اضافة اعلان
The government and other stakeholders are committed
to laying the groundwork for improving nutrition for all groups in line with
the royal vision regarding the necessity of achieving economic and social
development goals, according to Health Minister Feras Hawari, who was speaking
during a ceremony marking the launch of the strategy.
He went on to say that the strategy serves as a road
map for government and partner efforts to improve nutrition for all segments of
society in order to prevent malnutrition, overweight and obesity, micronutrient
deficiencies, and diet-related non-communicable diseases, as well as to promote
healthy diets.
The minister stated that Jordan has made significant
advances in nutrition in recent decades, citing progress in addressing
childhood malnutrition as evidenced by low prevalence rates of stunting and
wasting. Hawari also noted the outcomes of a scheme to enrich salt with iodine
and fortify wheat flour with iron and other nutrients in order to combat the
spread of iodine deficiency and severe anemia.
59%
rate of overweight and obesity among adults
A national study conducted in 2019 to evaluate
micronutrient deficiencies and the nutritional status of Jordanians and
Syrian refugees also revealed a decline in the prevalence of anemia and vitamin A
deficiency among children under five, reaching 19 percent and 8 percent,
respectively, according to the minister. Child stunting was at 7 percent, while
wasting was less than 1 percent, and adult overweight and obesity stood at 9
percent.
The minister stated that the study revealed a
decline in the prevalence of anemia among women of childbearing age and that
vitamin A deficiency is not a public health concern. In contrast, the study
revealed that 63 percent of the population was deficient in vitamin D at the
time of the study, while 11 percent and 19 percent were deficient in folic acid
and vitamin B12, respectively.
The study also revealed that the prevalence of
overweight and obesity among adults was high, at 59 percent, whereas low birth
weight was not a public health concern, as its prevalence rate was less than 2
percent.
Jamila Al-Rabi, the representative of the WHO in Jordan,
stated: “Appropriate nutrition is vital to human health and a fundamental
right. Changes in diets and lifestyles in the countries of the Eastern
Mediterranean Region led to the spread of unhealthy dietary patterns, resulting
in an increase in obesity, diet-related non-communicable diseases, low
exclusive breastfeeding rates, and micronutrient deficiencies.”
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