The Regional Director for Health reiterated in Lisbon the Regional Government's commitment to implement the Regional Programme for the Promotion of Healthy Food, which should happen in the beginning of the next school year.
 
"It is very important to know the tools available in the fight against obesity, within and outside the Region, in order to reduce diseases associated with it and follow the path towards prevention," said Tânia Cortez. The government official spoke on the sidelines of the 16th Congress on Nutrition and Food, an event promoted by the Portuguese Association of Nutritionists.
 
The indicators of the Regional Health Survey regarding 2014 show that 36.5% of the Azorean population between the ages of 20 and 74 is pre-obese and 27.5% is obese.
 
The harmful effects include obesity-induced diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.
 
Tânia Cortez stressed that the guiding document on healthy eating, already under preparation, will be coordinated with the Regional Secretariat for Education and Culture. According to the government official, the aim is to promote changes in attitudes among students, namely "reading the labels and interpreting the nutritional values of food, know their origin and how to prepare them."
 
This stage of education for healthy eating should be complemented, in a second phase, with physical activity programmes and initiatives for the reduction of alcohol and tobacco consumption, added the Regional Director.
 
Regarded as one of the major scientific events in this area at national level, the Congress on Nutrition and Food run until Friday and will focus on the challenges of food sustainability.