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Jamie Oliver has been a long-time advocate against the use of processed foods in national schools, and has long stood for healthier diets and cooking habits in the UK and U.S., especially with his show “Food Revolution.” But now he’s taking his mission beyond ABC: Going forward with his healthy humanitarian image, “The Naked Chef” has recently joined forces with a coalition of health and nutrition experts to decrease levels of obesity worldwide.
On September 19th and 20th, Oliver will debate issues on obesity at the UN Conference on Non-Communicable Diseases in New York along with a brood of other health and nutrition experts. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) website noted that this is only the second time that the UN’s General Assembly has met on a health issue, the last being AIDS. The goal is for countries to create and utilize an action-oriented document to shape the global agenda.
According to the Guardian, Oliver said at the One Young World conference in Switzerland last Friday:
There seems to be a trend with developing countries wanting to follow in the footsteps of the western world, and copy their patterns of fast food and consumerism [and] pre-packed convenience food is seen as a symbol of being ‘modern’ in developing countries, but the problems it causes are long-term, and costly.
He also stressed that he wants to make obesity a human rights issue, and said that diet-related diseases are one of the top five causes of premature death for people under 60.
At the summit, Oliver hopes to encourage the UN to take notice of the issue and urges a million people to sign a petition. He said to the Guardian, “I believe that together we can make some real noise ahead of this meeting of experts.”
Like many celebrities, Oliver is leveraging his fame to bring attention to his social and political mores, which at least in this case, we find an admirable ambition. Oliver is well-known for television shows, cookbooks, and Fifteen restaurants in London, but he’s nearly as well-known for using his success and influence in a positive, humanitarian way. Of course, he’ll need the support of others at the conference, but who wouldn’t support Oliver in his quest to decrease obesity and use education to change lives for the better?
Photo: Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com
