Around 44% of school going children consume sugar sweetened beverages daily

Our Reporter

ISLAMABAD: President of Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH) Major General (R) Masood-ur-Rehman Kayani said that choosing healthy foods protects us from deadly diseases, sugar sweetened beverages are not necessities of life, their increasing use is making our children, adults and women sick, the government should take effective measures to reduce the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages.

He said this while addressing a meeting of Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH) Civil Society. Sana Ullah Ghumman, General Secretary PANAH, hosted the event. Major General (r) Muhammad Ashraf Khan, Dr. Abdul Qayyum, Squadron Leader Ghulam Abbas, Chairperson Afshan Tehseen Bajwa the National Commission on the Rights of the Child, Rukhsana Nazi, a large number of civil society participants attended the event.

Sana Ullah Ghumman, General Secretary and Director Operations of PANAH, said that for the last 37 years PANAH has been educating the people about deadly diseases including heart. Our goal is to be part of a prosperous Pakistan. Our daily routine has negated healthy diet, walking and exercise as non-communicable diseases continue to increase gradually, he said.

He said that obesity is a major cause of heart, diabetes, cancer and other diseases, and one of the major causes of obesity is the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages. The beverages industry claims to pay 72 billion rupees in revenue while 428 billion rupees are spent annually on diseases related to obesity. We are misled, therefore this practice should be increased to reduce the consumption of these beverages, which cause diseases, so that we can be protected from the diseases.

Chairperson National Commission on the Rights of the Child Ms. Afshan Tehseen Bajwa and other civil society participants reiterate that we all have to work for the promotion of healthy food in Pakistan. Sugar Sweetened Beverages are the cause of diseases, their consumption will be reduced, for this increase in taxes is an effective mean which the government should take serious steps to implement, she said.