The Root Problems of the People’s Unbalanced Nutrition
There is a large proportion of people who are unable to access balanced nutritional food. There are many root causes of this issue that need to be addressed.
By
KOMPAS EDITOR
·3 minutes read
ADRYAN YOGA PARAMADWYA
A worker having lunch in an area of Sunda Kelapa Harbor, North Jakarta, Friday (9/12/2022). Approximately 183.7 million people or 68 percent of Indonesia's population are unable to meet their daily nutritional needs.
The Kompas daily data journalism team calculates that Indonesians need Rp 22,126 (US$1.42) per day, or Rp 663,791 per month, to pay for a healthy nutritious meal. This price was based on the standard nutritional composition of the Healthy Diet Basket (HBD) used by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). At such a high cost, 68 percent of Indonesia’s population, about 183.7 million people, are unable to afford it. Another calculation used in this analysis was based on the World Bank standard, which stipulates that food expenditure amounts to a maximum of 52 percent of total family expenditure (Kompas, 9/10/2022).
Discourse on the nutrition of the people has become an everyday discussion. However, it is a shame that such conversations do not expose the real problem. The consumption of an unbalanced, non-nutritious diet has become entertaining, which sometimes overshadows the real issues, such as the so-called monosodium glutamate (MSG) generation, the cilok (Indonesian sago cakes) generation and the instant-food generation. Moreover, influencers, who may be endorsed by certain brands, are more exposed to unhealthy and unbalanced-food consumption.
The large percentage of people who have an unbalanced diet is mostly due to accessibility. Financially, they are unable to afford nutritious food. Income is also an important factor.
MARGARETHA PUTERI ROSALINA
Kara Husna (4), a malnourished toddler in Wayaua Village, Bacan Timur Selatan District, South Halmahera, is on her mother's lap. Husna's weight is only 10.8 kilograms, beyond the weight range of children at her age. Husna eats more snacks than eating nutritious food.
However, even with an adequate income, access to a balanced diet is also difficult. In a number of offices and factories in big cities, we know for a fact that employees eat lunch menus that stray far from adequate nutritional content. Moreover, even dinners have nutritional compositions that are far from ideal.
But will increased income and accessibility easily solve the problem? Perhaps not. There is a decreasing amount of information on balanced diets being communicated so that the people are not even aware of balanced menus. They no longer receive adequate guidelines for consuming foods with a variety of nutrients. Most of the time, they are only exposed to messages that encourage them to have an unbalanced diet.
We still remember the old 4 Sehat 5 Sempurna (4 is healthy, 5 is perfect) campaign and the massive milk campaign, which actually made people aware of the need to have a balanced diet. We need a new approach so that with all existing limitations, the government, companies and the people can come up with a strategy for a balanced diet. We hope that this issue can be resolved so we can address the problem of stunting and low average intelligence as well.
