Canal Youtube Alimentação Saudável (PNPAS-DGS)

As doenças crónicas de base alimentar representam já a principal causa de morte e doença nas sociedades ocidentais. Portugal, com um milhão de obesos e com um crescimento acentuado dos custos sociais e económicos relacionados com este tipo de patologias, iniciou em 2012 e pela primeira vez, uma estratégia nacional no campo da alimentação e nutrição consubstanciada no Programa Nacional para a Promoção da Alimentação Saudável. A estratégia tem por base as orientações propostas pela Organização Mundial de Saúde, pela Comissão Europeia, as derivadas das experiências em países como a Noruega ou Brasil e ainda a análise retrospetiva de iniciativas anteriores a nível nacional. O Programa Nacional para a Promoção da Alimentação Saudável é apresentado de forma breve e são discutidos alguns dos principais desafios à sua implementação.

The Portuguese National Programme for the Promotion of Healthy Eating: 2012–2015

This paper describes the first 4-year period (2012–2015) of implementation of the Portuguese National Programme for the Promotion of Healthy Eating (PNPAS). PNPAS was approved in 2012 and emerged as a preventive programme for noncommunicable diseases, aiming to improve the nutritional status of the population; it represents the first national strategy in Portugal for the promotion of healthy eating. To accomplish its mission, and taking into account its overall principles, PNPAS has five main goals: (i) to increase knowledge about the food intake of the Portuguese population and about its determinants and consequences; (ii) to modify the availability of certain foods (high in sugar, salt and fat), in schools, workplaces and public spaces; (iii) to inform and empower the population for the purchase, preparation and storage of healthy food, especially the most vulnerable groups; (iv) to identify and promote crosssectoral actions that encourage the consumption of foods of good nutritional quality in an articulate and integrated way with other sectors, namely agriculture, sport, environment, education, social security and local authorities; and (v) to improve the qualifications and conduct of the different professionals who, owing to their roles, may influence nutritional knowledge, attitudes and behaviours. The design of PNPAS followed the latest strategic lines suggested by WHO and the European Commission, proposing a crosssectoral mix of interventions to ensure physical and economic access to healthy eating by creating healthy environments and empowering individuals and communities. Several actions were implemented at different levels during the first 4-year period of implementation of PNPAS; two were especially relevant. The first concerned the empowerment of citizens regarding healthy eating, where the most important aspect was introduction of a digital strategy through development of a website and a blog dedicated to healthy eating. The second concerned the development of documents for health care and other professionals, including several guidelines in new areas, such as anthropometric measures and intervention in preobesity. Process and output indicators were defined to monitor and evaluate the programme. Among those considered as output indicators were the evaluation of childhood obesity, salt consumption and intake of breakfast by school-aged children.