El Salvador’s ‘double burden’ of malnutrition and obesity is equivalent to 10 per cent of GDP – WFP

Unpublished

GENEVA - Researchers in El Salvador have found that undernutrition and obesity cost the country 10 per cent of its economic output.

In the first of a series of studies into countries in the region to highlight the cost of poor nutrition, the World Food Programme and partners said that in 2017, this “double burden” amounted to $2.5 billion.

Most of this came from lost productivity, while one-third was linked to extra healthcare costs, the agency said, highlighting that that many families often experience malnutrition and obesity at the same time.

According to the study, one-in-six children in the central American country are chronically undernourished and six in 10 adults are overweight or obese.


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