Nutrition and Development Week calls for better diets and exercises
The National Institute of Nutrition has raised warnings about malnutrition problems among children and adult alike caused by unhealthy lifestyles.
Vietnam has many achievements in nutrition and health. The number of malnourished children has dropped significantly and the quality of people’s food has improved. The rate of underweight children below five years old dropped by 30.1% in 2000 to 12.2% in 2019.
However, Vietnam still has to face various problems like stunting malnutrition which affected 22.4% of the children in 2019. This rate is highest in northern mountainous areas at 27.1% and the Central Highlands at 29.8%.
Meanwhile, children in urban areas are facing obesity problems. According to the survey conducted by the National Institute of Nutrition from 2017 to 2018 with 5,000 students from 75 secondary and high schools in Vietnam, the obesity rate among children was 29%. This rate in rural areas was 17.8% and 41.9% in the urban areas.
Unhealthy diets and lack of exercise are the main causes of obesity. The Ministry of Health's survey on risk factors for non-communicable diseases in 2015 showed that 57.2% of the adults from 18 to 69 ate very few vegetables and fruits. Salt consumption was 10 grams per person per day, double the WHO's recommendation. 28.1% of them exercised less than 150 minutes a week.
As a result, more and more people suffer from non-communicable diseases.
According to WHO in Vietnam, in 2017, of the 541,000 people that died in Vietnam, 76% died due to non-communicable diseases. Heart diseases, diabetes and cancer were among the top causes of death.
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Vietnam has many achievements in nutrition and health. The number of malnourished children has dropped significantly and the quality of people’s food has improved. The rate of underweight children below five years old dropped by 30.1% in 2000 to 12.2% in 2019.
However, Vietnam still has to face various problems like stunting malnutrition which affected 22.4% of the children in 2019. This rate is highest in northern mountainous areas at 27.1% and the Central Highlands at 29.8%.
Meanwhile, children in urban areas are facing obesity problems. According to the survey conducted by the National Institute of Nutrition from 2017 to 2018 with 5,000 students from 75 secondary and high schools in Vietnam, the obesity rate among children was 29%. This rate in rural areas was 17.8% and 41.9% in the urban areas.
Unhealthy diets and lack of exercise are the main causes of obesity. The Ministry of Health's survey on risk factors for non-communicable diseases in 2015 showed that 57.2% of the adults from 18 to 69 ate very few vegetables and fruits. Salt consumption was 10 grams per person per day, double the WHO's recommendation. 28.1% of them exercised less than 150 minutes a week.
As a result, more and more people suffer from non-communicable diseases.
According to WHO in Vietnam, in 2017, of the 541,000 people that died in Vietnam, 76% died due to non-communicable diseases. Heart diseases, diabetes and cancer were among the top causes of death.
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