World Nutrition Day 2025: The Foundation of Health Lies on Our Plates
On 'World Nutrition Day 2025; The Foundation of Health Lies on Our Plates', we asked our collaborator, Dr Sunil Kumar MBBS MRCA FCAI FRSA FBSLM DipIBLM, about his experience as a lifestyle medicine physician.
"I'm reminded daily that nutrition isn't just about what we eat, it's about the very foundation of human health and disease prevention.
The statistics are sobering. In 2022, over 2.5 billion adults worldwide were overweight, 890 million lived with obesity, while 390 million were underweight. This paradox of malnutrition exists in every country, reflecting our broken food systems rather than individual failings. Most heartbreaking is that undernutrition contributes to nearly half of all deaths in children under 5, largely preventable deaths.
In my practice, I witness how poor nutrition drives the epidemic of noncommunicable diseases. Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and many cancers, conditions I treat daily, are primarily rooted in dietary patterns established over decades. Yet I also see the remarkable healing power when patients embrace evidence-based nutrition.
The Science-Based Path Forward:
A truly healthy diet isn't about restriction, it's about abundance of the right foods:
🥦 Fill half your plate with vegetables
🌾 Choose whole grains over refined options
🥜 Include nuts, seeds, and legumes regularly
🐟 Prioritise lean proteins, especially fish
🧂 Keep sodium under 5g daily (about one teaspoon)
🍭 Limit added sugars to less than 10% of calories
🚫 Eliminate trans fats and minimise saturated fats
💧 Choose water over sugary beverages
Beyond Individual Choices:
As healthcare providers, we must advocate for systemic change. Better nutrition improves maternal health, supports safer pregnancies, and gives children the best start in life. When we address nutrition at the population level, we prevent disease rather than just treating it.
Every meal is an opportunity for medicine. Every patient conversation about food is a chance to prevent future illness. Every policy that improves food access is a step toward health equity.
This WorldNutritionDay, let's commit to seeing nutrition as the powerful medicine it truly is: accessible, affordable, and capable of transforming lives when we get it right."
What steps are you taking to make nutrition a priority in your life or practice?