Paddle with Me
The required resource in this lesson is quite lengthy. Note, you are only asked to read pages 6-36. Pay special attention to the sections on Kiribati. In your final case study, we will be virtually traveling to Kiribati to provide our (your) expertise on promoting child health. For the purposes of this lesson, we are learning about the impact on child health from urbanization in the Pacific. At the end of the course, we will be looking at a community that was relocated (urbanized) to another location in Kiribati. I’ll ask you about health concerns and diet changes related to urbanization. How does urbanization affect the health of the children?
In the article, on page 12, measures to guarantee adequate and healthy food supply are discussed as potential ways to meet Goal #1: “Eradicate extreme hunger and poverty”. Although bringing in outside food (such as food subsidies and other imported foods) could secure enough food supply so that families don’t go hungry – what kind of diet would that provide for the urban communities? Is it healthy? Most of the foods that are grown, locally, are done in more rural areas. For health promotion, we want to encourage food sovereignty and security within the community, using locally grown, healthy foods. What can we do to ensure that enough food is grown locally? And, how will that food supply reach all the families that live in more urban areas – who are tempted to buy the imported foods?
The following is taken from the required reading:
“While remaining predominantly rural in character, Pacific Island Countries (PICs) have, since colonial times, had one or more urban centers which served as administrative and trading posts which have offered a concentration of educational, health and basic infrastructure facilities. Today, however, the future of human settlements in the Pacific is becoming increasingly more urban, with a noticeable flow of migration from the rural areas and outer islands to the cities.” What does this mean for children and their diets?
“The change in diet consumption patterns is identified by Abbott & Pollard (2004) as a shift from traditional rural diets of fish, taro, breadfruit, and bananas to urban diets of imported white rice, canned mutton and beef, and sugar has resulted in high intakes of fat, salt and carbohydrates and a reduced intake of fiber, and are leading to an increase in so called ‘lifestyle diseases’ such as diabetes, strokes, hypertension (Connell, chap.2). These newly acquired eating habits are further strengthened through advertising and a lack of understanding of what constitutes healthy eating. The general feeling is that if food is advertised it must be good for you (supported by interviews VCA, FRC 2009). Inadequate diets, it is stressed, carry serious implications for the children and youth, and for their future (Bartlett, 2010).”
Advertising can be a powerful tool to promote the consumption of (unhealthy) processed foods. See the video: “Marketing food to children” to learn more about the power of food marketing – particularly targeting children. Food marketing is predominately the marketing of processed foods, paid for by Big Business food manufacturers. As children and their families become more urbanized, they become more influenced by commercial marketing of foods. How can we compete with that? How can we promote alternatives?
A Paddler’s Perspective
What do you think about the quote “if food is advertised it must be good for you”? I found this article very interesting…no wonder we’re getting away from traditional farming and the food systems of the Indigenous Pacific Peoples. Being aware of what they are up against, how these populations live, speaks volumes before you plan your approach to such problems as childhood obesity. Do the kids have a choice? Sometimes, we need to compromise or think about what kids DO have a choice over. They may not have access to locally grown produce. Perhaps we should be targeting those that have an impact on the diet of children (like the corner stores in the urban areas, etc)? Advertising is just one means to communicate health messages to children. What about games, songs, storytelling, group activities, etc?