Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific
Obesity in Pacific Island countries (PICs) has hit crisis levels, and the consequent high non-communicable disease (NCD) burden is devastating for their developing economies. Nutrition transitions from traditional, plant and seafood diets to a dependence on processed foods are at the core of the obe...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Nutrients |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/21/4669 |
| _version_ | 1797631483605680128 |
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| author | Shazna M. Buksh Annie Crookes John B. F. de Wit |
| author_facet | Shazna M. Buksh Annie Crookes John B. F. de Wit |
| author_sort | Shazna M. Buksh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Obesity in Pacific Island countries (PICs) has hit crisis levels, and the consequent high non-communicable disease (NCD) burden is devastating for their developing economies. Nutrition transitions from traditional, plant and seafood diets to a dependence on processed foods are at the core of the obesity and NCD epidemic in PICs. Fiscal policies are widely promoted as an effective mechanism to reduce consumption of unhealthy foods and increase consumption of fruits and vegetables. However, there are little data to evaluate the effectiveness of these policies as rates of NCDs and obesity in PICs continue to rise. This study used an online survey to recruit 4116 adults from six PICs: Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu. The study measured the consumption of and household access to sugar-sweetened beverages, ultra-processed packaged snacks, fruits and vegetables and attitudes on food prices and unhealthy eating. The study also assessed the relationship between consumption of these foods and drink and (1) household access, (2) price as a food choice motive, and (3) unhealthy eating attitudes. This study provides novel data on food-related behaviours in PICs, offers insights into the potential impact of NCD-related fiscal policies on food consumption and identifies other variables of interest. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T11:23:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-448b7fdfd40a41d19b027a6f6e773e6f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T11:23:16Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nutrients |
| spelling | doaj.art-448b7fdfd40a41d19b027a6f6e773e6f2023-11-10T15:09:59ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432023-11-011521466910.3390/nu15214669Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the PacificShazna M. Buksh0Annie Crookes1John B. F. de Wit2School of Law and Social Sciences, The University of the South Pacific, Suva 1168, FijiSchool of Law and Social Sciences, The University of the South Pacific, Suva 1168, FijiDepartment of Interdisciplinary Social Science, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Science, Utrecht University, 3584 CS Utrecht, The NetherlandsObesity in Pacific Island countries (PICs) has hit crisis levels, and the consequent high non-communicable disease (NCD) burden is devastating for their developing economies. Nutrition transitions from traditional, plant and seafood diets to a dependence on processed foods are at the core of the obesity and NCD epidemic in PICs. Fiscal policies are widely promoted as an effective mechanism to reduce consumption of unhealthy foods and increase consumption of fruits and vegetables. However, there are little data to evaluate the effectiveness of these policies as rates of NCDs and obesity in PICs continue to rise. This study used an online survey to recruit 4116 adults from six PICs: Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu. The study measured the consumption of and household access to sugar-sweetened beverages, ultra-processed packaged snacks, fruits and vegetables and attitudes on food prices and unhealthy eating. The study also assessed the relationship between consumption of these foods and drink and (1) household access, (2) price as a food choice motive, and (3) unhealthy eating attitudes. This study provides novel data on food-related behaviours in PICs, offers insights into the potential impact of NCD-related fiscal policies on food consumption and identifies other variables of interest.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/21/4669Pacific Island Countriesfiscal policyobesitynon-communicable diseasessugar-sweetened beveragessnacks |
| spellingShingle | Shazna M. Buksh Annie Crookes John B. F. de Wit Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific Nutrients Pacific Island Countries fiscal policy obesity non-communicable diseases sugar-sweetened beverages snacks |
| title | Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific |
| title_full | Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific |
| title_fullStr | Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific |
| title_short | Effectiveness of NCD-Related Fiscal Policies: Evidence from the Pacific |
| title_sort | effectiveness of ncd related fiscal policies evidence from the pacific |
| topic | Pacific Island Countries fiscal policy obesity non-communicable diseases sugar-sweetened beverages snacks |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/21/4669 |
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