Global Health Promotion

Africa is contending with unhealthy food environments that are, in part, driving increasing rates of overweight, obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases, alongside persistent undernutrition. This current paradigm requires expanded efforts – both in the volume and nature of empirical research, as well as the tools and capacity of those who conduct it. High quality and context-relevant research supports the development and implementation of policies that create healthy food environments.

This paper sets out the concept of the Africa Food Environment Research Network (FERN) initiative recently established by the Measurement, Evaluation, Accountability, and Leadership Support for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) (MEALS4NCDs) prevention project. Central to the Africa FERN initiative are: 1) building research capacity for innovative food environment research in Africa; 2) improving South–South, South–North partnerships to stimulate robust food environment research and monitoring in Africa and 3) sustaining dialogue and focusing priorities around current and future needs for enhanced food environment research and monitoring in Africa.

The FERN initiative presents an opportune platform for researchers in Africa and the global North to weave the threads of experience and expertise for research capacity building, collaboration and advocacy, to advance food environment research.

In this article we illuminate the important, yet typically underreported, role played by moral framing in public health messaging. We present case studies from West Java, Indonesia to demonstrate how moral framing is used to motivate health volunteers and to promote behavior change in line with government health policies.

We used qualitative research including participant observation, job shadowing, interviews and focus groups with health promotion workers and community members. Findings were analyzed using thematic and discourse analysis.

We identified three moral frameworks typically used to encourage shifts in normative health practices in Indonesia: Islamic values, right to health, and evidence-based public health policy, represented as indicative of modernity. Health workers tailor these moral frameworks to audiences in their health promotion work. While the immediate goal is to meet health performance targets, the broader goal is to generate forms of health citizenship commensurate with Indonesia’s political environment of democratic decentralization.

COVID-19 presents an opportune moment for the public health community to reevaluate the power of moral framing in health messaging, and how it can be used both as a compelling means of establishing community norms toward the common good, as seen in our Indonesia case study, and also as a mechanism used by counterpublics to challenge these norms and appeal to alternative values and versions of reality.

To assess art initiatives and programmes communicating health messages and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia from 2020 to 2021.

Qualitative narrative study.

Grey literature on COVID-19 art initiatives and programmes in Malaysia was reviewed.

The art initiatives and efforts in Malaysia to promote health and wellness during the COVID-19 pandemic were compelling and notable. These initiatives can be classified into five major categories, namely performing arts, visual arts, culture, literature and digital art. The main health messages conveyed through these initiatives included public education regarding COVID-19, health precautionary steps recommended for the public, and solidarity in the fight against COVID-19. These art initiatives cultivated positive responses from the public and increased their awareness of COVID-19.

From the public health perspective, the use of arts to educate and create awareness of COVID-19 in Malaysia were encouraging. The public is made more informed and prepared to face the challenges ahead.

analizar el sentido de coherencia y las habilidades para la vida y su relación con el cumplimiento del estilo de vida saludable.

estudio observacional transversal en personas con prediabetes atendidas en atención primaria, quienes respondieron a un cuestionario con variables sociodemográficas y hábitos saludables y a los cuestionarios de sentido de coherencia y habilidades para la vida. Se realizó un análisis descriptivo, bivariante y un modelo de regresión múltiple.

los y las participantes con mayor sentido de coherencia son quienes presentan mayores habilidades para la vida (Pearson = 0.470; p ⩽ 0.001) y mantienen un estilo de vida más saludable (B:1.24; p = 0.001). Una mayor puntuación de las habilidades de la vida se relaciona con un estilo de vida saludable (Pearson = 0.355, p < 0.001). El sentido de coherencia predice el estilo de vida saludable (BB = 0.21, p = 0.001).

las personas con prediabetes con un mayor sentido de coherencia y más habilidades para la vida realizan conductas más saludables con relación a la dieta, al ejercicio físico y al hábito tabáquico. Las personas con mayor sentido de coherencia tienen mayor probabilidad de seguir el estilo de vida saludable.

La soberanía alimentaria es el derecho colectivo a decidir sobre la producción, distribución y consumo de alimentos y promueve la generación de suministros alimenticios para el consumo local de tal forma que los consumidores queden resguardados de la volatilidad de los precios de mercados internacionales. En los pueblos indígenas esta tendencia resulta trascendental para hacer frente a condiciones de inequidad histórica que han impactado negativamente su salud pública. No obstante, es ignorada en algunos casos y en otros reemplazada por nociones centradas en la seguridad alimentaria, término alineado con políticas transnacionales derivadas del modelo económico dominante.

analizar con tres comunidades indígenas de Colombia las perspectivas de soberanía alimentaria y su influencia en la salud.

investigación participativa basada en la comunidad, para recolectar datos mediante grupos de discusión, entrevistas y observación. La población de estudio fueron tres comunidades indígenas del sur de Colombia. La selección de participantes se realizó según su trayectoria en la comunidad.

las comunidades entienden la soberanía alimentaria como la conservación de semillas nativas y alimentos propios, vista como oportunidad para el cuidado de la salud. Su debilitamiento se relaciona con el desarrollo de enfermedades de las personas y de la madre tierra. Para su fortalecimiento identificaron el tul, el yatul y la chagra (huerta) que reafirman la unión familiar, contribuyen a la recuperación de modos de producción desde la sabiduría ancestral y se posicionan como alternativa para la sostenibilidad económica.

la soberanía alimentaria conserva los saberes y prácticas tradicionales para una alimentación propia, debilitada por los sistemas agroindustriales. Es asumida como iniciativa local suscrita en un proyecto global de resistencia política y económica para la salud colectiva de los pueblos.