Experts have warned that people who have unhealthy diets are vulnerable to greater risks than the risk posed by tobacco. A United Nations Investigator has said that the government must take measures to tax the harmful food products.
A statement has been issued on the annual opening of the summit of World Health organization. The Belgian professor, Olivier de Schutter has called for efforts to launch the negotiations on the global pact to take care of the obesity epidemic. Schutter added, “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”.
Even in 2012, De Schutter had called for similar measures on food liken taxing unhealthy products, cracking down on junk food, regulating food which is high in salt, fats and sugar. The report has also called for an overhaul on the system of farm subsidies. This makes certain ingredients bit cheaper than others so the consumers can easily access fresh, healthy and nutritious food.
The report also said that the government has been focusing on the availability of calories but they are often not bothered about what kind of calories are being made available.
Photo Credits: Jagran
