Renowned lifestyle and wellness consultant, Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa, has reiterated the importance of consuming local Ghanaian foods to combat many non-communicable diseases, which are the leading causes of illness and death in Ghana.
The former Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) highlighted that the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, fried foods, and processed foods is highly associated with non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes. He emphasized that health promotion is crucial.
Stressing the need to prioritize Ghanaian local foods, Prof. Akosa stated that consuming more locally produced foods rather than Western and fast foods could help reduce the prevalence of non-communicable diseases in Ghana.
He noted that Ghanaians have moved away from nutritious local foods and are increasingly consuming imported, highly processed foods with high sugar content.
“I urge us all to return to our traditional diets, including ‘kontomire’ or cocoyam leaves, garden eggs, okro, ‘abedru’, and other healthy local foods, while minimizing our reliance on pizzas, noodles, and fried foods,” he advised.