Health Minister: Obesity on the rise

Obesity in Trinidad and Tobago has jumped from 25 to 55 per cent in the last ten years according to Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan. Khan said these figures include cases of obesity among children. He made the statement to reporters after yesterday’s 3rd Executive Board meeting of the Caribbean Public Health Agency(CARPHA). “Women in T&T are becoming fatter,” he said. “Every time I look at the local fast food industry I feel like I’m losing the war.” the minister said the ministry is trying to put a national schools’ policy in place to look at getting  young children to change their ways of thinking. “T&T is reviewing the National School Health Policy with the Ministry of Education and other key stakeholders to give a new direction in the promotion of students’ health from pre-school to university, as well as looking at a policy for reducing childhood obesity,” Khan said.

 

Khan spoke also of the CARPHA facility and the National Public Health Laboratory to be located in Caura. He said the facilities are to be joined and will cost US$30 million. Khan added, however, that he is looking at a Public Health Laboratory in Suriname which cost US$6 million. “We’d like to go across and see it and see if we can bring that model here at that cost,” Khan said.