Return to traditional diets, Sujudi says

Return to traditional diets, Sujudi says

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Health Sujudi called on the people
yesterday to stop eating fast food, which generally contains high
fat and low fiber, and return to traditional, healthier fare.

The minister noted that more people are becoming affected by
cancer and heart disease due to their changing lifestyles,
including food consumption patterns, as a result of their
improved economic standing.

An unhealthy lifestyle could lead to overnutrition, which is
contrary to what happened in the past, when some people suffered
from malnutrition, Sujudi said at the first Asian Conference on
Dietetics, which was opened by Vice President Try Sutrisno.

Sujudi pointed out the increase in the number of people
affected by diet-related diseases along with the adoption of the
new food pattern.

"Heart disease has become a top killer. In the past, we did
not have it," he said.

He suggested that people adopt healthier lifestyles and diets,
and "go back to nature" by eating more fruits and vegetables as
well as traditional food.

"We have soto (soup), kue mangkok, apem (traditional cakes
made of pulverized rice) and many other traditional foods. Why
must you eat hamburger?" the minister said.

Western fast food restaurant business has boomed in Asia over
the past decade with the opening of international food chains
such as McDonalds, Wendy's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger
King.

Develop

Sujudi also called on the conference participants to develop
healthy traditional food and inform the public about the benefits
of such offerings.

People involved in the traditional food business should
actively promote the food by improving the packaging in an effort
to attract consumers, Sujudi said.

Sujudi concluded by telling the participants to match words
with deeds.

The conference is participated in by about 500 people from 18
countries.

Try talked about the great variety of nutritious Asian food
available.

However, few people are aware of this due to lack of knowledge
in the field of nutrition and inadequate research.

He said it was important to conduct intensive research on
Asian food, not only to learn about nutrition, but also to find
out about its content.

This is important due to the different dietary restrictions of
Asian religions.

"Asian people are religious and they avoid food banned by
their religions. Therefore it is necessary to provide clear
information about the contents of the food," Try said.

Dietetic and nutrition experts are expected to play a great
role in this endeavor, which will protect consumers from
negligence or mistakes by food industries, which make decisions
based on commercial factors, he said.(sim)