“These results are encouraging, showing how longer-term interventions and lifestyle changes can tackle rising overweight and obesity in Kenya,” explained Dorcus Mbithe David-Kigaru, senior lecturer and researcher at Kenyatta University’s Department of Food, Nutrition and Dietetics and the project’s lead counterpart. “To sustain these body composition improvements, support groups should be formed among women with similar socioeconomic backgrounds and networks, weight loss expectations should be managed and community health practitioners should play a collaborative role,” Mbithe said.
Following Mbithe’s presentation of the study’s findings to key stakeholders, which included Kenya’s Ministry of Health, the National Healthy Diets Technical Working Group formulated a task force to take these findings further. “Kenya has shown limited progress towards achieving diet-related non-communicable diseases targets, highlighting the need for effective guidelines and interventions,” said Eric Ngereso Kihugwa, nutritionist at Kenyatta National Hospital and chair of the task force. “The new guidelines being formulated will enhance healthcare professionals’ ability to manage obesity effectively.”
“The study and Kenya’s newly formed task force are a testament to the vital role that stable isotope techniques can play in advancing health, nutrition and well-being at both the programmatic and policy level,” said Cornelia Loechl, head of Nutritional and Health-related Environmental Studies in the IAEA Division of Human Health. “By generating data, these tools enable researchers, programme stakeholders and policymakers alike to undertake more nuanced, evidence-based actions that effectively address global health challenges.”