Daily Times

Excessive use of unhealthy food by bulk of teenagers and youngsters across the country had negative effects on their health exposing them to fatal ailments like obesity, piles, allergies and stomach disorders.

Like other parts of the country, unhindered use of junk and expired food like burger, shawarma, chicken rolls, chips, snacks, burgers etc in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also often land its victims to doctors clinics and hospitals.

Faraz Khan (24), a youth of Wapda Town Nowshera was a recent instance of this dilemma as few days back he felt severe pain in his stomach due to irritable bowel syndrome and piles and was rushed to Government hospital Pabbi where doctors operated him to cure the ailment.

The doctors diagnosed that overeating of an expired chicken mostly used in shawarma, chicken rolls, chips, snacks, burgers besides low fat yogurt and cheese, high carbohydrate fatty food and beverages were the major causes of ailment in patients like Faraz.

Faraz was not alone but thousands other students of colleges and schools across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were exposed to unhealthy junk foods being sold openly outside the educational institutions in towns and cities adversely affecting their health.

There is an abundance of such shops and foods stalls at Qissa Khwani bazaar, Namak Mandai, Karimpura, Charsadda Road, Faqirabad, Tehkal, Board bazaar, Lateeef Abad, Hayatabad, Warsak Road, Dalazak Road, Chamkani, GT Road and other localities, mostly seen selling unsafe cuisines and expired food.

Professor Dr Ata Muhammad at Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar said that like many other countries Pakistan is also confronting challenge of an overweighting, piles and obesity mostly among college and schools students who excessively consume unhygienic and substandard food.

Declaring these ailments mostly as the fifth leading cause of global death, Dr Ata Muhammad said that obesity contributes to about 60-70% deaths besides non-communicable diseases across the world including Pakistan.

“The number of children and youth aged five to 19 with obesity had increased from 11 million in 1975 to 124 million in 2016 globally due to excessive consumption unhealthy junk food,” he said referring to a WHO report.

Terming obesity a salient killer, he said around 30 percent of the world population was overweight that becomes the cause of making 44% to suffer from diabetes, 23% from heart diseases and seven to 41% from cancers.

“Pakistan ranks 10th among 188 countries with about 50 percent of its population being overweight or obese,” Dr Ata said and mentioned to World Obesity Foundation report revealing that around 5.4 million school children in our country would be obese by 2030 if open sale and manufacturing of unsafe food is not properly controlled.

Besides new emerging trends of eating, a marketing onslaught through different mediums especially the social media was also reckoned as a major cause of attracting more and more youth t these unhealthy foods.

Professor Dr Naeem Khattak, an economist from University of Peshawar thinks massive social media campaigns as major cause of attracting youth to unhealthy junk food. “These mediums unfortunately tempt youth, who form around half of our population, to such foods.”

Dr Sirzamin Khan, Head of Urology Department, Govt Hospital Pabbi has also noted that data compiled from different hospitals had revealed that 40 to 50 percent children were either overweight or obese and policy makers and healthcare commission of KP need to take prompt measures for its prevention.

“Lack of parents’ attention to children’s food needs, publicity of different unhealthy foods items on digital and social media and their unchecked sale and limited sports events had largely contributed to ailments,” he said.

These doctors have recommended healthy, balanced and home cooked diet besides sports, daily exercises and walk as well as regulation of sale of standard food items.

Meanwhile, the Spokesman of KP Food Safety and Halal Food Authority (KPFS&HFA) has claimed that operation against unsafe and substandard food sellers has been accelerated across the province as during last year over 136,690 inspections were conducted and 539,982 kilograms and litres of substandard food items were destroyed.

“Thousands of litres counterfeit beverages and adulterated milk was also discarded,” he said reiterating the government’s resolve of zero tolerance against those involved in sale and purchase of adulterated and junk food. “Mobile food testing laboratories with latest testing equipments have been established at all divisional headquarters,” he informed. “These labs cover a range of food tests, including testing of milk, flour, edible oil, ghee, water and other food items on spot. The government is also planning to establish such labs at district level.”

The authority setup under KP Food Safety Authority Act of 2014 also hires volunteers alongside regular staff, to monitor food safety and quality standards, the spokesman said.

As he urged people to inform the authority in case of selling expired or substandard food items by the restaurants or hotels, the experts have urged the provincial government to enact special legislation against sale and purchase of substandard junk food and take strict action against food mafia.