Big Soda Challenged on World Diabetes Day

A soda-lemonade stand with soda bottles topped with lemons, in Rishikesh, India. Credit: Surya Prakash / CC-BY-SA-3.0By Lyndal RowlandsUNITED NATIONS, Nov 12 2014 (IPS)Corporations marketing unhealthy foods to poorer consumers are being challenged for their role in the growing global burden of diseases like diabetes.Over 340 million people are living with diabetes, and the World Health Organization predicts the number of people who die from diabetes each year will double between 2005 and 2030.  Nov. 14 is World Diabetes Day."Being poor also puts you at risk in countries like Indonesia where soda companies actually purposely market to poorer marginalised people with lower levels of education.” -- Dr. Alessandro DemaioDr. Alessandro Demaio, a postdoctoral fellow in global health and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) at Harvard University, told IPS that there is a clear link between poverty, diabetes and the marketing tactics used by junk food and soda companies.“We know that globally about 80 percent of diabetes occurs in low- and middle-income countries, and we also know that in rich countries like Australia, the UK and the U.S., the worst affected populations are those who are most marginalised and impoverished,” Demaio said.“The commonly held myth that non-communicable diseases are linked to affluence is pervasive and absolutely untrue.”Diabetes is both a cause and consequence of poverty, Demaio said. “Diabetes care in a country like Vietnam or Malawi can cost 70...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Active Citizens Civil Society Featured Food & Agriculture Global Headlines Health Poverty & MDGs TerraViva United Nations diabetes fast food obesity Source Type: news