P16 An interdisciplinary study of historical and epidemiological transitions in urban caribbean foodscapes: understanding the past to enhance future nutrition strategies

Guell, Cornelia; Altink, Henrice; Moore, Malcolm A; McMorris, Meghan; Morrissey, Karyn; Smith, Mari; Unwin, Nigel; Williams, A. M.; Govia, Ishtar

doi:10.1136/jech-2019-ssmabstracts.167

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Our earlier study of newspaper advertising in Jamaica since 1945 showed a marked increase from the mid-70s for foreign foods that fit the “Standard American Diet”; burgers, pizzas and fried chicken [ 22 ]. US-based fast-food franchises became a common feature in Jamaica, and they especially increased in the 1980s and 1990s.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The research design and research question built on previous projects, including a transdisciplinary partnership-building award that connected public health researchers with historians. In this previous pilot study (conducted in 2019) we analysed fast-food advertisement in The Gleaner newspaper archives (one of the major daily newspapers and the oldest paper in Jamaica) to understand changes over time in Jamaica’s foodscape and explored in what way a transdisciplinary research agenda between historians and health researchers can inform contemporary challenges [ 22 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Situating commercial determinants of health in their historical context: a qualitative study of sugar-sweetened beverages in Jamaica

Barnett-Naghshineh,

Warmington,

Altink

et al. 2023

Global Health

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Background Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of mortality across the Caribbean and similar regions. Structural determinants include a marked increase in the dependency on food imports, and the proliferation of processed foods, including sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). We focused on Jamaica as a case study and the health challenge of SSBs, and situated contemporary actions, experiences and policies within their historical context to investigate underlying drivers of commercial determinants of health and attempts to counter them. We asked: how can a historical perspective of the drivers of high level SSB consumption in Jamaica contribute to an enhanced understanding of the context of public health policies aimed at reducing their intake? Methods An ethnographic approach with remote data collection included online semi-structured interviews and workshops with 22 local experts and practitioners of health, agriculture and nutrition in Jamaica and attending relevant regional public webinars on SSBs and NCD action in the Caribbean. Our analysis was situated within a review of historical studies of Caribbean food economies with focus on the twentieth century. Jamaican and UK-based researchers collected and ethnographically analysed the data, and discussed findings with the wider transdisciplinary team. Results We emphasise three key areas in which historical events have shaped contextual factors of SSB consumption. Trade privileged sugar as a cash crop over food production during Jamaica’s long colonial history, and trade deregulation since the 1980s through structural adjustment opened markets to transnational companies. These changes increased Jamaican receptiveness to the mass advertisement and marketing of these companies, whilst long-standing power imbalances hampered taxation and regulation in contemporary public health actions. Civil society efforts were important for promoting structural changes to curb overconsumption of SSBs and decentring such entrenched power relations. Conclusion The contemporary challenge of SSBs in Jamaica is a poignant case study of commercial determinants of health and the important context of global market-driven economies and the involvement of private sector interests in public health policies and governance. Historically contextualising these determinants is paramount to making sense of the sugar ecology in Jamaica today and can help elucidate entrenched power dynamics and their key actors.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%