Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases

Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases

Report of a Joint WHO/FAO Expert Consultation

Year of publication 2003

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Product type Book (stand-alone)

ISBN 924120916X

Edition 1

Full item page

Synopsis (short abstract) Shifting dietary patterns, a decline in energy expenditure associated with a sedentary lifestyle, an ageing population - together with tobacco use and alcohol consumption - are major risk factors for noncommunicable diseases and pose an increasing challenge to public health. This report of a Joint WHO/FAO Expert Consultation reviews the evidence on the effects of diet and nutrition on chronic diseases and makes recommendations for public health policies and strategies that encompass socie tal, behavioural and ecological dimensions. Although the primary aim of the Consultation was to set targets related to diet and nutrition, the importance of physical activity was also emphasized. The Consultation considered diet in the context of the macroeconomic implications of public health recommendations on agriculture and the global supply and demand for fresh and processed foodstuffs. In setting out ways to decrease the burden of chronic diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases (including hypertension and stroke), cancer, dental diseases and osteoporosis, this report proposes that nutrition should be placed at the forefront of public health policies and programmes. This report will be of interest to policy-makers and public health professionals alike, in a wide range of disciplines including nutrition, general medicine and gerontology. It shows how, at the population level, diet and exercise throughout the life course can reduce the th reat of a global epidemic of chronic diseases.

Language English

Also available in:

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

Article

Cross-context equivalence and agreement of healthy diet metrics for national and global monitoring: a multicountry analysis of cross-sectional quantitative 24-hour dietary intake studies 2024

Also available in:

No results found.

The impacts of diets on public health are well recognized, yet most countries do not have surveillance systems for monitoring diets at scale. This is constrained, in part, by the lack of universally accepted healthy diet metrics. Timely national dietary intake data are crucial to assess more immediate progress toward international initiatives’ indicators, identify within-country disparities, permit valid cross-country comparisons, and inform high-level decisions on nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive actions.
Book (stand-alone)

Globalization of food systems in developing countries: impact on food security and nutrition 2005

Also available in:

No results found.

Food systems are being transformed at an unprecedented rate as a result of global economic and social change. Urbanization, foreign direct investment in markets of developing countries and increasing incomes are prime facilitators for the observed changes, while social changes, such as the increased number of women in the workforce and rural to urban migration, provide added stimulus. Changes are also facilitated in concrete ways by food production based on intensive agriculture, new food proces sing and storage technologies, longer product shelf-life, the emergence of food retailers such as fast food outlets and supermarkets and the intensification of advertising and marketing of certain products. The sum of these changes has resulted in diverse foods that are available all year for those who can afford them, as well as a shift in home-prepared and home-based meals to pre-prepared or ready-to-eat meals, often consumed away from home. These food system and lifestyle changes are in turn having an impact on the health and nutritional status of people in developing countries. There is an indication of rapid increases in overweight and obesity, particularly among adults, and an increasing prevalence of diet-related non-communicable diseases. At the same time, social inequalities are increasing, particularly in urban areas. The papers appearing in this publication were first presented at the workshop "Globalization of food systems: impacts on food security and nutrition" held at FA O headquarters in Rome from 8 to 10 October 2003 . The chapters are arranged in two parts. The first contains overview chapters providing a synthesis of findings from 11 country case studies, an overview of issues related to urban food insecurity, a review of nutritional change in developing countries and some policy options to address these changes.
Book (stand-alone)

Carbohydrates in human nutrition. 1998

Also available in:

No results found.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

No results found.