UAE sleepwalking into health crisis with 96 per cent consuming too much salt

Major national survey shows mountain to climb to improve lives

The first National Nutrition Survey in the UAE may cause alarm bells to ring at the country's health authorities and diet has become a major focus. Rex Features

Millions of UAE residents could be sleepwalking into a health crisis after a national survey found that 60 per cent of people did not exercise enough and 96 per cent ate too much salt.

A survey of 20,000 households also found that 56 per cent of those who took part ate too much fat, while 27 per cent exceeded the recommended daily sugar intake.

Recommended levels of salt intake are lower than 5g per day, with a typical fast food meal of burger and chips containing around 3.5g and an average medium-size pizza loaded with 10g of salt.

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The first National Nutrition Survey is likely to set alarm bells ringing with health authorities, although it revealed a 2.4 per cent fall in the number of smokers.

The survey examined dietary patterns among adults aged 18 to 69, but did not reveal figures for vaping or e-cigarette use.

Dr Hussain Al Rand, assistant undersecretary for public health at the Ministry of Health and Prevention, said the results should be used for guidance towards healthier food choices.

“These findings will guide the development of innovative health programmes, expanded preventive screening, and clear health messaging aimed at empowering individuals to make healthier daily choices,” he said.

“They can be used in supporting a society where health and quality of life are protected and sustained.”

Data was collected in face-to-face interviews using multiple language questionnaires approved by the World Health Organisation. Of those who took part, 40 per cent were Emiratis and 60 per cent overseas residents.

In total, 22 per cent were obese, and one in four people had high blood pressure, often a result of a diet high in salt and fat, and sedentary lifestyle.

Long term problem

Nouf Khamis Al Ali, director of the Health Promotion Department at the Ministry of Health and Prevention, said obesity is a long-term problem that requires long-term answers.

“Obesity needs time to to be solved,” she said. “The high consumption of salt and sugar, again, explains the current situation we are facing when it comes to non-communicable disease.

“High sugar and high fat are two real issues here. If we want to tackle that, first we need to understand what people eat and what food items are really contributing to the high intake of salt, sugar and fat.

“This information will help us to better decide how we want to move forward and what strategies could help.”

While a flat-rate sugar tax on soft drinks was introduced in 2017, a new pricing system from January 1 links the tax rate directly to the level of sugar content per 100ml of beverage.

Drinks with five and eight grams of sugar per 100ml will be taxed at 79 fils (Dh0.79) per litre, while those containing 8g or more of sugar per 100ml will be subject to a tax of Dh1.09 per litre.

“Sugar taxation has already started, which is really focusing on reducing the intake of sugar, this strategy is really effective in reducing consumption,” said Ms Al Ali.

“When it comes to salt, we're going to look into other strategies or policies that could really help, like reformulation, which have shown promise in some countries in reducing overall intake.

“We don't expect really big changes in the next seven years, but I'm sure there will be some.

“The policies we are implementing will create that supportive environment which will make choosing healthy food easier.”

Despite the survey figures, experts said there had been an improvement since a similar health survey ended seven years ago.

Experts said there had been an 11.7 per cent increase in physical activity and a 2.9 per cent decrease in people with high blood pressure since 2017.

Obesity rates were also on the slide, with official figures down 14.8 per cent since 2010, offering hope campaigns such as the annual Dubai Fitness Challenge and beginning of sugar taxes were slowly taking effect.

Nouf Khamis Al Ali, Director of the Health Promotion Department, Ministry of Health and Prevention. Antonie Robertson / The National

Signs of recovery

Encouraging findings were also observed in dietary diversity, with 85.1 per cent of women aged 15 to 49 and 77.9 per cent of children aged six months to five years meeting the minimum dietary diversity threshold.

Dietary diversity is measured based on the daily consumption of at least five approved food groups, including cereals, legumes, nuts and seeds, dairy products, meat, poultry, fish and eggs.

It also includes dark green leafy vegetables, fruits, vitamin A-rich vegetables, and other essential food categories.

Dr Adeeb Hussain, a specialist in internal medicine at NMC Medical Centre, Sharjah, said cost and convenience had pushed more people towards fast food, and ultra processed foods loaded with sugar and salt.

“Junk food is easily accessible, and if you see the survey’s indicator of sodium intake and obesity, they are very close,” he said.

“Adolescents are exposed to too much fried food, bread, and cheese which contains a lot of sodium. This directly acts upon obesity rates, which develops in adults, and is a major risk factor for all the cardiac problems we are facing today.”

Cardiovascular disease causes 40 per cent of deaths in the UAE, with rates increasing, especially among younger people.

“The best solution is to encourage eating food at home – home cooked food is always good,” said Dr Hussain.

“The second is to avoid as much processed foods and junk food readily available on the market.

“People used to eat out once a week as a treat, now many people eat out or order fast food most days. That is a problem.”