Strijd wordt gestart
De Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie maakt zich op om, geheel analoog aan de Oorlog Tegen Tabak, de strijd aan te vangen tegen overgewicht. Liefhebbers van Cola, een frietje met veel zout en mayonaise of andere junk-food producten zullen binnenkort te maken gaan krijgen met beperkingen. De voedingsindustrie zal, analoog aan de strijd tegen de tabaksindustrie, te maken krijgen met reclameverboden, rechtszaken en verkoopbeperkingen.
The WHO believes that obesity is now one of the world’s three greatest health threats, along with smoking and malnutrition. Recent estimates suggest that 1.7 billion people are now overweight, leading to a surge in diseases such as cancers and diabetes.
The WHO will call for heavy cuts in the use of sugar, salt and saturated fats – a move that will alarm many of Britain’s top-selling brands, including Cadbury’s, Coca-Cola, and Birds Eye.
The WHO will produce a policy paper calling for new daily limits for sugar, salt and fats, as well as tougher control of food advertising.
The safety threshold for sugar would be 10gms a day – a limit already exceeded by one 500ml bottle of cola. Salt should be limited to 5gms a day – the amount in a standard tin of baked beans.
