Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as diseases of the heart and blood vessels, diabetes mellitus and cancer are on the rise and continue to be the number one cause of death and disability worldwide. According to the Healthy Philippines Alliance (HPA), there has been a spike in heart attack cases during holidays. Overeating, especially of unhealthy foods, has been blamed as the culprit.
The Heart and Stroke of Canada classifies the foods we eat into unprocessed or minimally processed, processed and ultra-processed foods. The first group includes the whole foods we eat in their natural state such as vegetables, fruits, rice and other staples. The second group may have been added with salt, sugar, oil like bread, canned tuna – all of which can still be made part of a nutritious diet if planned well. The last group, the ultra-processed foods (UPF) , contain many added ingredients including artificial flavorings and has underwent much more processing like extrusion, molding, milling, etc. Examples are soft drinks, chips, chocolate, candy, ice-cream, sweetened breakfast cereals, packaged soups, chicken nuggets, hotdogs, fries and more.
While food processing is continuously being promoted to preserve food while ensuring food availability and addressing food insecurity as well as low income, ultra-processed foods had been seen as the primary culprit in many diseases, particularly NCDS. UPF tops the list of unhealthy foods that should be avoided or the consumption of which should be cut down and actually has been and continues to be the subject of many articles in the internet. These foods are high in calories, sugar or salt, saturated and transfats yet lacking of vitamins and minerals they originally contain. These are to be avoided to significantly cut down on salt, sugar and fat intake. Being advertised widely and even promoted as “organic”, “healthy,” consumption has greatly increased contributing to the poorer quality of diet.
Even non-UPF foods however, can also be unhealthy if prepared with too much sodium, sugar, fats and consequently calories. Salt, soy sauce, gravies, and bagoong are high in sodium has long been linked to hypertension which is a risk factor to stroke and heart attack. Sugar and any kind of fat are concentrated sources of calories which contribute to overweight and obesity which is also a risk factor for many NCDs. Saturated fats and trans fats are likewise linked to heart attack and stroke. So are cholesterol-rich foods.
The Christmas season brings about an abundance of food and all that matters is discipline in eating. Most likely, there may be no problem in variety in food intake, but may we also be reminded of the other principles of a healthy diet – moderation, balance, calorie restriction. Read and understand food labels too as we await actions on house and senate bills intended to create a healthy food marketing environment by requiring front-of-package warning labels for food high in fat, sodium, or sugar and regulating the marketing of such food to children.
