Jaevion Nelson | School nutrition and wellness policy needed urgently

Children are consuming an enormous amount of unhealthy and ultra-processed food that is helping to drive up the already alarmingly high rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the country.

Earlier this year, I wrote in this paper that healthier food options are out of the reach of our pockets and that the reports about NCDs paint a really grim picture about our health. The Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey (JHLS) for 2016-2017 says more than 70 per cent of the population had insufficient resources or access to safe, healthy, and nutritious foods. It is, therefore, not surprising that non-communicable diseases are “a major driver of morbidity and mortality in the country”.

The Case for Investment in Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases in Jamaica (2018) found that “nearly four out of five individuals die from NCDs, and a 30-year-old has a 17 per cent chance of dying prematurely from any of the four main NCDs (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer) before reaching his or her 70th birthday”.

What we don’t talk about a lot, though, when we talk about NCDs, is the situation with our children and the interventions that are necessary to address the situation. Data also show that hypertension among our children is rising. In 2017, more than 30,000 children between 10 and 19 were found to be hypertensive – a condition not common in children. The WHO Global School-based Student Health Survey (2017) revealed that 20 per cent of boys and 26.4 per cent of girls between the ages of 13-17 were overweight, and 9 per cent of boys and 9.5 per cent of girls were obese. Additionally, 69.1 per cent of students 13-17 years reported that they usually drink carbonated soft drinks one or more times per day. The data for physical activity are equally worrying. Only 23.2 per cent of students were physically active at least 60 minutes per day on all seven days during the seven days before the survey, and 56.4 per cent of students reported spending three or more hours per day sitting and watching television, playing computer games, or talking with friends when not in school or doing homework during a typical or usual day.

NO VEGETABLES

A couple years ago, I was helping to organise some support for a primary school in rural Jamaica where a significant portion of the children are on PATH and receive meals at school. I was most shocked at how often bread, corned beef, fried dumpling, fritters, and rice appeared on the breakfast and lunch menu. There was no mention of vegetables on the lunch menu. How can we beat NCDs if unhealthy food options are so commonplace and we are moving at snail pace to pursue certain reforms? It is especially worrying when you consider news reports about the number of students who are on PATH in some schools and their dependence on the meals provided at school.

The Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Christopher Tufton, has said that “as a matter of urgency, we must drive the NCD agenda forward … we must challenge systems and approaches that do not yield results and be willing to think outside the box”.

The finalisation of the School Nutrition and Wellness Policy is critical in this regard. According to the Jamaica Youth Advocacy Network (JYAN), “changes are needed, particularly in the place where children are consuming most of their food: at school … . We need policies and nutrition programmes that protect children’s health in schools”. JYAN has launched a petition encouraging the Government to take action in this regard. It says that “Jamaica needs to have a school-nutrition policy that requires schools to procure and provide healthy food options to students and that restricts the availability, advertising, and marketing of unhealthy food options in and around the school environment”.

What is happening to the proposed policy? Has it been finalised, and if it has, what is causing the delay? A report by the JIS in August 2019 said that it was to be completed by the end of the 2019-2020 academic year. Do we not realise that this is a priority, an area in which urgent action is needed since around three-quarters or more of our students get their lunch from the school canteen, tuckshop, or vendors at the school?

Let us take steps to get this done to safeguard the health of our children and beat NCDs. As JYAN says, “Public institutions, and schools in particular, should champion public health by providing a foundation for healthy youth if we are to curb the prevalence of NCDs in Jamaican society.”

 Jaevion Nelson is a human-rights, economic and social justice and inclusive development advocate. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and jaevion@gmail.com, or follow him on Twitter @jaevionn.