Amway Mexico Combats Double Burden of Malnutrition
by Jeff Terry
Mexico is the 12th largest country in the world, according to worldatlas.com. It is also has one of the highest population rates of overweight adults (69%) in the world*. Overweight and obesity are classified as one type of malnutrition that, when combined with undernutrition (e.g., stunting, vitamin and mineral deficiencies) forms the double burden of malnutrition.
In 2015, Amway, in partnership with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), initiated Malnutrition mapping studies conducted in more than 30 countries around the world, including Mexico. These studies highlight country-by-country statistics and insights on nutritional challenges – specifically as they relate to the survival and the healthy development of children.
Amway Mexico is using information from these studies to address the double burden of malnutrition in key ways through Nutrilite™ Power of 5 and Body Key by Nutrilite™. Amway CSR Manager Jeff Terry had the opportunity to talk to media about these initiatives in Mexico City and Valle de Barre last month.
Body Key by Nutrilite™ is a weight management program that launched in Mexico early this year. The core of the Body Key program is making better, smarter choices that fit into a person’s individual lifestyle. Fifteen media outlets and influential health bloggers participated in a media event to hear how Body Key supports a solution for the issue of overweight and obesity.
According to Terry, “Through Body Key, we are providing helpful lifestyle tools for individuals currently looking to improve their health. Additionally we are trying to support the nutritional health of children early in life. According to the Malnutrition Mapping study, roughly 23% of children under 5 in Mexico are malnourished, 1.5 million are undernourished and 1 million are overweight or obese. We are helping to provide better nutrition through the Nutrilite Power of 5 campaign as well.”
The Nutrilite™ Power of 5 Campaign is designed to build awareness of childhood malnutrition and address the critical need for proper nutrition during the first 5 years of life. Nutrition researchers at Amway developed Nutrilite™ Little Bits™ to give undernourished children younger than 5 the essential nutrients they need to grow and to develop a healthier brain and body. Through a relationship with Un Kilo de Ayuda, Nutrilite Little Bits™ is currently being distributed in Mexico. Amway is working to increase the number of children receiving Nutrilite Little Bits™ – with an ultimate plan to support at least 20,000 children in Mexico by 2018.
With measures like these in place to combat obesity and undernutrition, Mexico in one step closer to becoming a country unburdened by most forms of malnutrition in children and adults.
*World Health Organization. Global status report on noncommunicable diseases 2014. Geneva, 2014.
