The activities of the Slovenian Strategic Council for Nutrition 2023/24 to improve the health of the Slovenian population and the sustainability of food : a narrative review

Fras, Zlatko (author), Jakše, Boštjan (author), Kreft, Samo (author), Malek, Žiga (author), Kamin, Tanja (author), Tavčar, Nika (author), Fidler Mis, Nataša (author)

The health status of individuals in Slovenia across age groups is a matter of concern, as current unsustainable lifestyle choices are already leading to various chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Outdated national dietary guidelines, their inconsistent implementation, and a lack of structural changes represent obstacles to promoting healthy and sustainable nutrition. Limited access to and rising prices of healthy, sustainable foods, in addition to the high availability of low-priced, highly processed foods, increase the risk of NCDs. The lack of systematic health monitoring and early disease detection poses a challenge. Global and local environmental issues, resistance, and/or the inability to adopt healthier diets hinder individuals from changing their nutritional behaviours. In this narrative review, we provide an overview of the current situation in Slovenia as well as planned activities initiated by the Slovenian government and the Prime Minister’s Strategic Council for Nutrition, aiming to make progress in supporting healthy and sustainable nutrition, limiting food waste, and increasing the availability of healthier foods for all. Improving the sustainability of the Slovenian food system can contribute to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ensuring Slovenia’s commitment to internationally agreed-upon targets. This could lead Slovenia to take a role as a pilot country in testing and implementing the necessary systemic changes, which could be further applied in other countries.

• Language: English
• Keywords: healthy nutrition, sustainable nutrition, dietary guidelines, chronic diseases, monitoring, healthy lifestyle
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.02 - Review Article
• Organization: FDV - Faculty of Social Sciences; FFA - Faculty of Pharmacy; MF - Faculty of Medicine
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2023
• Number of pages: Str. 1-21
• Numbering: Vol. 15, issue 20, [article no.] 4390
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-151693
• UDC: 613.2(497.4)
• ISSN on article: 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu15204390
• COBISS.SI-ID: 168669443
• Publication date in RUL: 17.10.2023

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Nutrients
• Shortened title: Nutrients
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2072-6643
• COBISS.SI-ID: 2948140

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: javno zdravje, zdrava prehrana, trajnostni razvoj, zdravstvene navade, Slovenija