TT has the ninth highest percentage of overweight children under the age of five in the world, according to 2022 data from a World Health Organization report.
However, it is important to note there were gaps in the data as 41 countries provided no data at all.
The 2023 Levels and Trends in Child Malnutrition, Unicef (United Nations Children’s Fund) / WHO / World Bank Group Joint Child Malnutrition Estimates state that in 2022, 13.9 per cent or approximately 12,600 children under five years old were overweight in TT.
The report explained childhood overweight occurs when children’s caloric intake from food and beverages exceeds their energy requirements. And that since 2000 there had been an increase of about four million children under five living with overweight globally, taking the 2022 number to 37 million.
“To stop malnutrition before it starts, children and their families need access to nutritious diets, essential services and positive practises to set them on the path to survive and thrive.
“But today, these vital pathways to good nutrition are under growing threat, as many countries plunge deep into a global food and nutrition crisis fuelled by poverty, conflict, climate change and the enduring secondary effects of the covid19 pandemic.”
It added that childhood overweight and obesity increased the risk of obesity, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), premature death and disability in adulthood.
For that reason, in 2017, the sale of sugar sweetened drinks, such as sports and energy drinks, and soft drinks were discontinued in government and government-assisted schools. Only water, 100 per cent fruit juices, and other milk, blended vegetables, and fruit drinks with no added sugars or artificial sweeteners are available for sale in cafeterias.
Commenting on the report, consultant paediatrician and adolescent health specialist Dr Asha Pemberton said data from several key countries were missing, making it difficult to draw accurate conclusions. She said just in the Caribbean region, the northern islands, like the Bahamas, usually had higher rates than TT.
[caption id="attachment_1018293" align="alignnone" width="576"] Dr Asha Pemberton, consultant paediatrician and adolescent health specialist. Photo courtesy Dr Asha Pemberton. -[/caption]
“I wouldn’t rank it because too many other countries are missing. But what we can say is that, of those countries listed, TT’s numbers are in the higher range and we still need to look at how we could improve practise and policy around child nutrition.”
Sports and nutrition consultant Tracey Pierre was also concerned about the missing data but added that TT’s numbers painted a “very scary picture” for the country’s future adult population.
Both specialists stressed that nutrition education for parents and guardians was key to addressing the problem. They also said there was a psychological component to food that needed to be addressed and arrested before the situation escalated.
Pierre said, in general, people did not know about healthy intake ranges or h
