Reducing taxes on health foods such as vegetables and fruits and ensuring compliance with school food supply rules are some of the priorities highlighted in the new report.
This document, which assesses the performance of public policy related to a healthy diet, also recommends expanding food represcription plans, including catering.
According to a report released by the Directorate General of Health (DGS), a model with more supervision needs to be defined to ensure that existing guidelines for food supply in schools apply.
The author of the document also recommends the definition of a nutrition profile model that serves as the basis for implementing measures to promote a healthy food environment and proposes amendments to the value-added tax (VAT) code.
The intent is to “include other criteria for attribution of VAT rates, in addition to the essential criteria that consider food nutrition profiles and / or their framework within a healthy diet.”
Include programs to promote a healthy diet in the basic portfolio of primary health care services, and define indicators for regular monitoring of food and nutrition-related food consumption, nutritional status, and health outcomes.
Experts also suggest improving the workforce in the areas of nutrition and public health, adjusting the proportion of nutritionists in primary health care, and at least one of these specialists in each public health unit at the level of primary health care. Integrate people.
It is another recommendation to include the most vulnerable population groups in the field of nutrition and healthy eating as priority action groups: the elderly, pregnant women, children, adolescents and immigrants.
This document recalls that inadequate nutrition is one of the major preventable causes of chronic non-communicable diseases: obesity, neoplastic disease, cerebrovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes, the world of 2019. It emphasizes that up-to-date data from burdensome illnesses show: “In Portugal, improper eating habits are the five risks that most determine years of healthy living and loss of mortality. It’s one of the factors. “
“In Portugal, as in other European countries, dietary risk factors place importance on the burden of illness, a measure that promotes a healthy diet, a healthy food environment. It is necessary to implement measures aimed at creating. ”Written by an expert.
They emphasized that Portugal has applied “a wide range of measures aimed at creating a healthy food environment”, sought response, and followed international recommendations, sales tax on sugar beverages, food advertising. The law that introduces restrictions is taken as an example. Regulation of food supply for children and various public spaces (educational institutions, national health services, etc.).
Latest National Food and Physical Activity Survey (2015-2016).
According to data from the previous National Health Survey (2019) released by the National Statistics Institute (INE), 53.6% of Portugal’s adult population is overweight (pre-obesity or obese), with 1.5 million (16.9) obese. Is affecting. %).
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