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Almost 50% of adult South Africans are overweight or obese. Poverty and poor nutrition are largely to blame

Almost 50% of adult South Africans are overweight or obese. Poverty and poor nutrition are largely to blame

MALNUTRITION, in all its forms, includes undernutrition (wasting, stunting, underweight), inadequate vitamins or minerals, overweight and obesity. South Africa has undergone a nutritional transition over the past 30 years characterised by the triple burden of malnutrition: households are simultaneously experiencing undernutrition, hidden hunger, and overweight or obesity due to nutrient-poor diets. Results of the first in-depth, nationwide study into food and nutrition since 1994, the National Food and Nutrition Security Survey, found almost half the adult population of South Africa were overweight or obese. While there was sufficient food to feed everyone through domestic production and imports, many families and…
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Sudan’s displaced millions struggle to survive as economy seizes up

Sudan’s displaced millions struggle to survive as economy seizes up

ABOUT two months after heavy clashes around his home in Sudan's capital drove Sherif Abdelmoneim to flee, soaring rent and food costs forced the 36-year-old and his family of six to return to a city where fighting still rages. Most of those who fled Khartoum after war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out in mid-April have not returned. They face malnutrition, floods and scorpions as they depend for survival on handouts and meagre aid relief, the generosity of host communities stretched increasingly thin. More than 5.25 million of Sudan's 49 million people have been uprooted since…
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Using AI in agriculture could boost global food security – but we need to anticipate the risks

Using AI in agriculture could boost global food security – but we need to anticipate the risks

AS the global population has expanded over time, agricultural modernisation has been humanity’s prevailing approach to staving off famine. A variety of mechanical and chemical innovations delivered during the 1950s and 1960s represented the third agricultural revolution. The adoption of pesticides, fertilisers and high-yield crop breeds, among other measures, transformed agriculture and ensured a secure food supply for many millions of people over several decades. Author ASAF TZACHOR, Research Affiliate, Centre for the Study of Existential Risks, University of Cambridge Concurrently, modern agriculture has emerged as a culprit of global warming, responsible for one-third of greenhouse gas emissions, namely carbon…
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Biden pledges $10 billion to fight global hunger

Biden pledges $10 billion to fight global hunger

PRESIDENT Joe Biden told the United Nations General Assembly that the United States would commit $10 billion toward ending hunger in his country and around the world. Nearly one in three people did not have access to adequate food last year, Biden said in his speech to the annual gathering of world leaders, and the United States is committing to rally partners to address malnutrition. "To that end, the United States is making a $10 billion commitment to end hunger and invest in food systems at home and abroad," Biden said. He did not provide details on the program. On…
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Malnutrition among children is rife in Nigeria. What must be done

Malnutrition among children is rife in Nigeria. What must be done

MALNUTRITION is one of the world’s major public health and development concerns. In Nigeria, the situation is dire. Currently, UNICEF says 5 in 10 children under five years old suffer from the effects of being malnourished. This has an overarching impact on the lives, future and productivity of Nigerian children. Ogechi Ekeanyanwu, from The Conversation Africa, asked Blessing Akombi-Inyang, a maternal and child health expert, to explain the reasons for this high rate of malnutrition. BLESSING AKOMBI-INYANG PHD, MPH, Lecturer in Global Health, UNSW Why is malnutrition so endemic in Nigeria? The main reason is malnutrition’s close association with poverty.…
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Cholera is still a danger in Nigeria: here’s what the government can do

Cholera is still a danger in Nigeria: here’s what the government can do

THOUSANDS of cases of cholera have been reported in Nigeria between January and June 2021. The northern states of Bauchi, Gombe, Kano, Plateau and Zamfara are among those affected. OLAYINKA STEPHEN ILESANMI, Lecturer, Department of Community Medicine, University of Ibadan Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease caused by Vibrio cholerae bacteria. It is passed on from faeces through contaminated food, drinks and unhygienic environments, and causes severe dehydration. Infected people can die if their illness is not quickly managed with oral rehydration. In the past, cholera infections were common in many countries around the globe. Now they are mostly confined…
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Effects of COVID-19 on millions of Nigerians

Effects of COVID-19 on millions of Nigerians

LIBBY GEORGE and ESTELLE SHIRBON SHEHU Ismaila Gbadebo has worked as a barber for two decades. The money he made at his rented stall in a bustling suburb of Nigeria's megacity, Lagos, used to be plenty for him to pay bills and set aside some savings. Now, he relies on donated food and sometimes skips meals to feed his family. Since COVID-19 hit Africa's most populous nation and biggest economy, prices for some staples such as eggs, onions and palm oil, have risen by 30% or more. Fewer people can afford a haircut, and those who can are demanding discounts…
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World hunger, malnutrition soared last year mostly due to COVID-19 – U.N. agencies

World hunger, malnutrition soared last year mostly due to COVID-19 – U.N. agencies

MAYTAAL ANGEL WORLD hunger and malnutrition levels worsened dramatically last year, with most of the increase likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a multi-agency United Nations (U.N.) report. After remaining virtually unchanged for five years, the number of undernourished people rose to around 768 million last year - equivalent to 10% of the world's population and an increase of around 118 million versus 2019, the report said. Authored by U.N. agencies including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), the report is the first comprehensive assessment of food…
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Neglected tropical diseases threaten a whole new generation, but it is not too late to avert disaster

Neglected tropical diseases threaten a whole new generation, but it is not too late to avert disaster

ANATOLE MANZI GROWING up in rural Rwanda, I thought that my constant abdominal pain was an inescapable condition of childhood. I was surrounded by my friends, all with distended stomachs, hair loss from malnutrition, chronic conjunctivitis, or worse.  Without available treatments, parents would coach their children to endure the pain. Thirty years later, I  visited my home village as a public health specialist overseeing health systems strengthening at Partners In Health, a leading global health organization. There, I met old friends suffering from blindness, and chronic physical and mental impairments. They were afflicted from advanced forms of the same Neglected…
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Thousands more underfed children may die due to COVID

Thousands more underfed children may die due to COVID

AN extra 10,000 children per month may die this year from malnutrition due to the COVID-19 crisis, the head of the World Health Organisation has warned. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a U.N Food and Agriculture (FAO) conference that due to the pandemic he expected a 14% rise in cases of severe child malnutrition this year - or 6.7 million more people - mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. "We cannot accept a world where the rich have access to healthy diets while the poor are left behind... the rich can afford to stay home, the poor must go out…
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