THE combating childhood obesity was in focus conference of the World Health Organization – Europe with the participation of the political leadership of the Ministry of Health.

In particular, they participated the Minister of Health Adonis Georgiadis and the Deputy Minister of Health Irini Agapidakis, in the presence of the head of the WHO Office in Greece and the WHO/Europe Office for Quality of Care and Patient Safety in Athens, Joao Breda. The “present” was also given by the head of the obesity program in the WHO European Region, Dr Kremlin Wickramasinghe and the diplomatic representative of UNICEF in Greece, Dr Ghassan Khalil.

Greece is facing alarmingly high rates of obesity

The Minister of Health Adonis Georgiadis, among others, emphasized that “one of the most critical challenges we face today in public health is childhood obesity. It is an issue that threatens future health and well-being of our nation’s children. WHO Europe’s contribution is critical as we embark on our clear and urgent mission: to shape a united and robust response to curb the growing trend of obesity and overweight, particularly among our children. Childhood obesity is not just a concern, it is a crisis that requires immediate and decisive action.”

As the minister said, Greece, despite the fact that it is the birthplace of the famous Mediterranean diet, faces alarmingly high rates of obesity in its youth.

“It is shocking to recognize that 60% of our adults and one in three of our children are living with overweight and obesity. This stark contrast to our rich tradition of healthy eating is an urgent call to rethink our approach.”

“Our objectives – he continued – are clear and indisputable: to present the current state of obesity in Southern Europe, to critically evaluate the implementation of effective interventions and to identify priorities for action. Through sharing knowledge, experiences and best practices, we aim to mobilize immediate and sustained action against this epidemic. In Greece we have the knowledge, tradition and community spirit to reverse this trend. However, a concerted effort is required from all sectors of society – government, health professionals, educators and families. We owe it to our children to create an environment that supports healthy choices and promotes lifelong wellness.”

The Deputy Minister of Health, Irini Agapidaki, spoke about the actions of the program.

“Together with UNICEF, we developed a program that aims to prevent and combat childhood obesity. Our goal is not just early detection of childhood obesity but prevention of the risk factors that lead to it. So we developed a program that targets primary, secondary and tertiary levels simultaneously. The primary purpose of the program is to change the environment that leads to childhood obesity.”

Data on childhood obesity in Greece

Childhood obesity in Greece is a serious public health issue, since, as the relevant indicators show, our country ranks third among the member states of the European Union in children under 5 years of age, second in children aged 5 to 9 years old and the first place in children and teenagers 10 to 19 years old.

“So the vast majority of the population, whether we’re talking about children or adults, are either overweight or obese. For this reason, we have undertaken this national action against childhood obesity for the next two years,” said Ms. Agapidaki.

The program has already started is implemented as a pilot in 59 schools of the country and from the new school year it will be applied universally, in national level. with the aim of acquiring skills, hygiene, nutrition skills, physical exercise skills, food waste skills etc.

As Mrs. Agapidaki said, children and their families are given free access to nutritionistsaccess to doctors, to digital tools that can be used by their families and themselves, depending on their developmental level.

“And we’re also making it easier for families to connect with each other and create local networks where we can really promote healthy living activities, healthy living skills and focus on the positive side of health which is promoting healthy actions and behaviors life.

At the same time, we have developed a strategy to increase awareness, as well as the development of skills related to basic health behaviors. We want to teach children that healthy food is delicious food.”