Dietary Guidelines Initiatives

Introduction

The National Food-Based Dietary Guidelines Framework, is a proposed collaborative initiative between the Dr Kasenene Wellness Clinic and the Ministry of Health's Department of Public Health, and the Uganda Vegan Society. This framework aims to promote healthy eating habits and improve public health outcomes in Uganda through the inclusive national dietary guidelines initiative. This initiative is intended to establish a basis for public food and nutrition, health and agricultural policies and nutrition education programmes to foster healthy eating habits and lifestyles among Ugandans.Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDGs) are powerful, top-level tools recommended by the FAO, WHO, and IPCC to meet health and climate goals

They form the basis for the development of official food policies as well as nutrition and health programs. However, most national dietary guidelines do not take into account the multiple impacts of food choices and still largely promote an animal-based diet, which is one of the causes of some of the most urgent problems we face in the areas of health, environment, social justice, and animal welfare, as well as increasing the future risk of zoonotic pandemics such as COVID-19. In particular, most dietary guidelines fail to reflect the latest scientific evidence on health and sustainability.

Building on the latest scientific evidence and local expertise, our partnership seeks to develop a comprehensive guide for healthy diets, addressing the growing concerns of malnutrition, non-communicable diseases, and food security in the country. Our shared vision is to empower individuals, communities, and stakeholders to make informed food choices, fostering a healthier and more sustainable future for all Ugandans. 

Wy Dietary Guidelines

BatMost dietary guidelines recommend only animal-based foods in the ‘protein-rich’ food groups and include dairy products as a separate group, without mentioning plant-based foods such as lentils, beans, and green leafy vegetables as well as plant-based substitutes such as fortified soya milk and tofu. The recommendations in FBDGs urgently need to become more balanced. They also need to become more inclusive in that they consider ethical, ecological, religious and economic aspects that play a role in people’s everyday lives.

All large-scale evaluations of FBDGs have shown that governments are lagging behind in integrating health and sustainability goals into national dietary guidelines. Having analyzed relevant scientific papers by Klapp et al. (2022), Springmann et al. (2020), Herforth et al. (2019), van ’t Erve et al. (2017), and Gonzalez Fischer and Garnett (2016)1, we have identified five main aspects that need to be changed.

5 key requirements for balanced guidelines:

• FBDGs should provide inclusive food groups and eliminate animal-only food groups.
• FBDGs should include recommendations to reduce animal-based foods based on health and sustainability benefits.
• FBDGs should encourage healthy and sustainable food choices and give advice for the broad spectrum of plant-based diets.
• FBDGs should recommend healthy plant-based substitutes to animal-based foods.
• FBDGs should provide guidance on well-planned vegetarian and vegan diets.

Project Overview

The National Dietary Guidelines Project aims to develop and implement evidence-based dietary guidelines to promote healthy eating habits and improve public health outcomes in Uganda. The Food Based Dietary Guidelines Initiative (FBDGI) aims to address these issues and make FBDGs more balanced. Together with partners from all over the world, the FBDGI team will encourage decision makers to provide dietary recommendations that cover the broad spectrum of plant-based diets and therefore help to meet health and climate goals.

Objectives

• Improve knowledge and awareness of healthy eating habits among Ugandans
• Increase adoption of healthy dietary practices
• Reduce the burden of diet-related diseases
• Strengthen the healthcare system's capacity to promote healthy eating

Deliverables

This collaborative project aims to develop a comprehensive, evidence-based Dietary Guidelines document for Uganda, accompanied by educational materials and resources. In partnership with Doctor Kasenene of the Wellness Clinic, we will create targeted resources for healthcare professionals, educators, and the general public. 

The Uganda Vegan Society (UVS) will produce training reports and evaluations, documenting capacity-building efforts and progress during the implementation phase. These deliverables will contribute to a robust and sustainable framework for promoting healthy diets and improving public health outcomes in Uganda. The project's impact will be measured by its success in improving healthy eating habits and reducing diet-related diseases nationwide, ultimately informing policy and practice through the adoption of the guidelines by the Ministry of Health.

Implementing Partners

The implementing and development partners of the Uganda Dietary Guidelines project are;

• Dr Kasenene Wellness Clinic (Implementing Partner)
• Ministry of Health, Department of Public Health (Development Partner)
• Uganda Vegan Society (Implementing Partner)
• Pan International  (Development Partner)