Healthy Lifestyle Trends in Albania: Perception vs. Reality │ Edisona Xhani
?Recently, a healthy lifestyle has become a prominent trend on social media, celebrated as the flashy new niche of the younger generation. Influencers promote healthy lifestyles, including healthy food and fit bodies, as a result of regular exercise. Despite its many economic and social challenges, Albania has managed to catch up with this global trend, portraying its society as living up to European standards. However, is this our everyday reality?
In Albania, many households have long practiced home gardening, cultivating a variety of vegetables and fruits in their backyards. Nowadays, due to rapid lifestyle changes imposed by economic development, this practice has changed drastically. Home gardening is a sustainable practice that reduces reliance on industrial agriculture, which is often associated with higher carbon emissions and environmental degradation. However, the prevalence of home gardening has been long fading. However, home cooking meals have a cultural precedence over fast food in our country. Nevertheless, the rapid lifestyle, the high cost of living, the adaptation of our country with European or global trends of lifestyle has had an impact on the way Albanians live today.?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a major concern in Albania. NCDs share five major risk factors: tobacco use, physical inactivity, the harmful use of alcohol, unhealthy diets and air pollution. The prevalence of obesity, a risk factor for many NCDs, is relatively high, with 23.4% of[1] adults being overweight or obese. Increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables can help mitigate these health risks and promote overall health.
Albania's obesity prevalence is lower than the regional average of 25.3% for women but is equal to the regional average of 24.9% for men. At the same time, diabetes is estimated to affect 7.8% of adult women and 8.9% of adult men[2].
The Albanian Institute of Public Health reports that dietary habits in the country are often characterized by high consumption of processed foods, sugars, and red meats, while the intake of fruits and vegetables remains low. Only about 30% of the population[3] meets the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables. This dietary imbalance contributes to the high prevalence of NCDs, which are responsible for a significant portion of the disease burden in Albania.
According to Eurostat[4], 67.9% of people at risk of poverty in Albania in 2021 were unable to afford a meal containing meat, fish, or a vegetarian equivalent once every two days—more than three times higher than the European average. The latest Eurostat data revealed that in 2022, Albania ranked last in Europe in terms of Gross Domestic Product per capita, with 34% of the European average.
Furthermore, exercising and dedicating quality time to maintaining a good physique comes with its challenges. The hectic lifestyle and often times long working hours deprive many people of the time needed to dedicate themselves to exercise. Even when there is time, the prices of gym memberships are not always affordable for a majority of citizens, given that the cost of living is rising daily and salaries[5], despite yearly increases, do not cover daily expenses as prices have increased enormously. According to INSTAT, 79.6% of women in cities and 84% in villages in Albania do not engage in aerobic exercise weekly. For men, the percentage is slightly lower but remains the highest in Europe, with 74% in urban areas and 78% in rural areas not exercising during the week.
In recent years, agro-tourism has seen significant development, reflecting a growing trend towards businesses that aim to keep alive the tradition of slow, local food. Additionally, the Albanian government and non-governmental organizations are supporting small-scale farmers and promoting organic farming methods to create a more sustainable food system.
Despite individual efforts, new agro-businesses, and online trends addressing current? challenges related to dietary habits and physical activities, it is essential to push forward national policies that address these issues comprehensively.
The National Action Plan for Food and Nutrition that covered the period 2013-2020[6]? was followed by the National Food Security Strategy 2023–2027[7]. It is worth mentioning that in order for these action plans and national policies to have a meaningful impact, they need to be accompanied by adequate financial instruments and well-organized and dedicated national campaigns to ensure these policies do not remain only on public institution shelves.
That being said, some measures that can help improve the situation in Albania include:
-?????? Launching nationwide public health campaigns that emphasize the importance of healthy eating, regular exercise, and the dangers of processed foods and sedentary lifestyles.
-?????? Building more public sports spaces in our neighborhoods.
-?????? Supporting health centers and administrative units with trained professionals, programs, logistical tools, and increased budgets to work systematically with community members.
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-?????? Controlling the market prices of fruits and vegetables to avoid abuse.
We need to be aware not to risk turning the famous Latin saying — ‘mens sana in corpore sano’ — ‘a healthy mind in a healthy body’ into just a fashionable expression. After all, healthy minds are those who contribute meaningfully and push forward the betterment of societies.
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*This article was written as part of the BeeEFB Programme 2023/2024 and the winning project 'We Are What We Eat.' The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of the European Funds for the Balkans.
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Program Monitoring and Evaluation
7 个月Well done, Edisona :) A very relevant topic to discuss on!
Experienced Procurement and Supply Chain Professional | Focused on Efficient Sourcing, Risk Mitigation, and Collaborative Solutions
7 个月Great job, Edisona! I’d like to draw attention to this insightful paragraph from the article: ‘The National Action Plan for Food and Nutrition that covered the period 2013-2020 was followed by the National Food Security Strategy 2023–2027. It is worth mentioning that in order for these action plans and national policies to have a meaningful impact, they need to be accompanied by adequate financial instruments and well-organized and dedicated national campaigns to ensure these policies do not remain only on public institution shelves.’ Let’s hope more people take notice and engage in positive change
Social worker assistant
7 个月Well done Edisona. Such an interesting article ??????.