Asia-Pacific is at a risk of poor nutrition as modern trade policy opens the region to a flood of ultra-processed food and drinks, according to a study published in Globalization and Health, a conclusion supported by a study by University of the Philippines researchers, who found young people here are at greater risk of noncommunicable diseases from consuming fast food.

In a study by Australian researchers that looked at sales and company data from transnational food and beverage companies, it was found that in China, expenditure on food services from companies such as KFC and McDonald’s increased eighteen-fold from $1.90 per person in 1999 to $34.80 per person in 2013. The research also revealed that the Coca-Cola Company alone had sales in 2013 of more than $16 billion in the Asian region, or 18 percent of their world sales.

Friel called for stronger health regulations across the region, including in Australia. “We need to start looking at policies that mitigate the health risks of these types of products,” Friel said. “We need to look at introducing a tax on sugary drinks.”

Investment by food and beverage companies is facilitated by trade and investment agreements, the study noted. Friel also called on governments “to think about the trade and investment agreements they are signing, what they will mean for domestic health policy, and how they can protect human health.”

Growing problem in PH

The findings of the Australian researchers echoed those of researchers from the University of the Philippines-Diliman, who found that most of the commonly consumed fast food products among youth could increase risks of developing noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).

NCDs are cardiovascular diseases like heart attacks and stroke, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes, and are responsible for more than 36 million annual deaths worldwide, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO stressed that NCDs are highly preventable, but that unhealthy diets are the most significant contribution to their development.

In the UP study, researchers surveyed 1,030 college students aged 16 to 20 years to determine their commonly consumed fast food products. The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) then analyzed the most preferred foods.

The FNRI found that the most consumed fast food products of young people were energy-dense but low in fiber.
“Meaty dishes exceed the recommended amount of energy, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and cholesterol for ages 16-18 years old. Side dishes and condiments also contained considerable amounts of saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium while sweetened beverages and desserts contributed to the total amount of energy from meals,” the FNRI conclusions said.

Previous research has linked excessive energy content, cholesterol, fats, and sugar with increased risks of NCDs, researcher Cecile Klaudine C. Cabigas said.

To promote healthier food choices among the youth and reduce the incidence of NCDs, researchers advised fast food establishments to provide nutrition labels on their food products and develop healthier combinations in “value meals.” Also, the young must be educated with physical activity pointers, the researchers suggested.

The UP study was funded by the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development under the Department of Health’s Health Systems Research Management Program.

Albano said he would exhaust all means to ensure that House Bill 180, the proposed Philippine Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act, will be passed by the House plenary before June.

“I think the majority will vote for it. There’s a strong clamor now to support the bill,” he said in an interview with the Manila Bulletin.

“I’ll try to do it (plenary approval) before June,” Albano said.

Congress is on a month long break and will resume session on May 2, then adjourn on June 2.

The House Committee on Health, chaired by Quezon Rep. Angelina “Helen” Tan, created a technical working group (TWG) to scrutinize and hammer out the provisions of HB 180, which seeks to legalize the medicinal use of cannabis or marijuana in the country.

The Departments of Health (DOH) and of Science and Technology (DOST)-Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD) proposed that safeguards be put in place to ensure the medicinal use of marijuana would not be abused.

Albano expressed optimism that his proposal would finally see the light this 17th Congress amid President Duterte’s intensified war on illegal drugs.

He said Congress should pass his measure to help thousands of patients in the country suffering from serious and debilitating diseases.

“We are not decriminalizing marijuana,” he said, hopeful that the Duterte administration will include his proposal in its list of priority measures.

Albano maintained that his measure contains very stringent control provisions on the use of medical marijuana to prevent any abuse.

“I have high hopes under the Duterte administration that this measure would be enacted into law. Finally, there is hope for our people, especially our children, who suffer from medical conditions like epilepsy, cancer, and multiple sclerosis,” he said.

Five health technologies that will greatly improve the delivery of public health services have been developed in the Philippines in the past year, and will see widespread use throughout the country this year, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) said.

The Department of Science and Technology- Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD), the national coordinating body for health research, said the five technologies developed with DOST support are making a difference in local healthcare delivery. 

“We have been supporting local programs on health and health research that provide and strengthen the local healthcare ecosystem,” DOST-PCHRD said in a statement.

Lower cost knee replacement

Funded by DOST-PCHRD and developed by Orthopedic International, Inc. the Axis Knee System is touted as the first and only knee system designed in the Asean region which allows access to knee replacement for lower-income patients, as the system reduces the costs of the procedure and prosthetic parts by as much as 40 to 50 percent compared with existing systems.

A large part of the cost savings, DOST-PCHRD pointed out, is in the system’s innovative instrumentation and surgical technique, which reduces the training time necessary for surgeons to be qualified to perform knee replacement surgeries. Under existing systems, the necessary training typically requires the doctor to undertake a one-year fellowship or residency program.

Internet-based health data

The RxBox is a device that captures medical signals through built-in sensors, stores data in an electronic medical record (EMR), and transmits health information via the internet.

Jointly developed by the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman and Manila, the device reduces unnecessary travel and hospitalizations as it enables diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of patients from geographically isolated and depressed areas of the country, DOST-PCHRD explained.

The Department of Health (DOH) separately lauded the RxBox as an innovation that supports its call for universal health care, as it offers a remote diagnosis tool for doctors and patients.

Better local health policies

The eHealth TABLET for Informed Decision Making of LGUs (eHATID LGU) is an Android application developed by Ateneo De Manila University, which provides real-time health information and a facility for direct communication between local chief executives and rural health units (RHUs), which are often isolated from government centers.

The device works securely even in the absence of an internet connection, and is intended to provide decision-making support to local government units (LGUs) by providing real-time local health data.

All the eHATID LGU data are synced to a central database via the government cloud facilities of the Advanced Science and Technology Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-ASTI), which provides a national-level pool of data.

Cheaper dengue test

Biotek-M, a dengue test kit developed by the UP Manila National Institutes of Health Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, is a confirmatory test for dengue diagnosis, which the DOST-PCHRD said is as accurate as the currently available Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology, yet less expensive as it is locally produced.

The kit is designed to provide a rapid diagnosis of suspected dengue cases, which saves hospitals time and resources and can reduce the number of hospital admittances.

The development of Biotek-M was funded by the University of the Philippines System thru the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST)-TECHNICOM.
Simple dengue control

The mosquito ovicidal/larvicidal trap (OL Trap) is a simple vector control method to reduce the population of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the carrier of dengue, Zika, and malaria viruses.

The simple trap, which essentially consists of a cup containing an organic solution, works by attracting the A. aegypti to lay its eggs, which are then killed by the solution. The OL Trap was developed by the DOST-Industrial Technology Development Institute (ITDI).

The DOST and the DOH are already collaborating for the nationwide distribution of the OL Traps, DOST-PCHRD said.