Sugary food on offer at diabetes press conference

ABU DHABI // The nationwide problem of bad diet and poor food choices was reflected at a press conference to announce next month’s 5km Walk for Diabetes, with an array of processed, sugar rich and high calorie food on offer.

Caterers failed to fall in line with the conference’s healthy message and campaign, with a lunch consisting of white bread sandwiches, chocolate muffins, biscuits, croissants and deep fried falafel - the kind of food people who are vulnerable to type two diabetes should avoid.

“If you eat these foods you raise your blood sugars which means your body produces insulin to lower them and you go into a slump, feeling weak and tired and you’re unable to focus,” said Stephanie Pech, nutritionist from Natural Nutrition Dubai.

“If you have these kinds of food regularly and your body goes through that process so many times in a day, you become insulin resistant and you develop serious health issues.”

Having this sort of food on offer at meetings, she said, is not only unhealthy but can hinder people’s productivity.

“People need to work and use their brains and consuming sugary foods doesn’t help. Sugar gives you brain fog and people can’t perform properly if they eat those kind of foods.”

Ms Pech said campaigns such as Walk For Diabetes provide the perfect opportunity to promote healthy living.

“The main goal of these events is to educate people and you’d expect to have healthy options and snacks. You can have fruits, vegetables, dips. I just don’t understand why you’d choose foods which actually help cause these illnesses.”

A spokeswoman for the event declined to comment.