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)