ARISE-NUTRINT
Between 2010 and 2019, the global prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents aged 10–19 years saw a significant increase. For boys, rates rose from 14.4% to 20.2%, while for girls, the increase was from 13.8% to 18.4%. The COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated malnutrition rates in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) due to heightened food insecurity and reduced access to healthcare.
The ARISE-NUTRINT Initiative
In response to these challenges, the ARISE-NUTRINT initiative aims to establish a global alliance to prevent and reduce nutrition-related noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) among adolescents and youth in Africa. The initiative focuses on enhancing adolescents’ health behaviors and outcomes through nutrition literacy and fluency, while providing critical policy information and tools to scale and sustain interventions supporting healthy food consumption and lifestyles.
Key Objectives
To achieve this overarching goal, here are some of the main objectives of ARISE-NUTRINT
Understanding Risk Factors: The project focuses on identifying diet and nutrition-related risk factors contributing to NCDs among adolescents in seven sub-Saharan African countries.
Implementing Evidence-Based Interventions: ARISE-NUTRINT aims to optimize the implementation of interventions that promote healthy behaviors among adolescents and youth, ensuring these strategies are both effective and sustainable.
Evaluating Long-Term Impact: The initiative assesses the long-term costs, effects, and impacts of these interventions, providing valuable insights into their effectiveness and scalability.
Policy Development and Knowledge Translation: By analyzing factors that influence the adoption, scale-up, and sustainment of interventions, ARISE-NUTRINT develops actionable policy recommendations to support adolescent health.
Collaborative Efforts and Future Directions
The project is a collaborative effort involving leading African institutions, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Heidelberg Institute of Global Health. Together, they work towards advancing implementation science in priority research areas and developing the next generation of public health leaders in Africa.
A significant component of ARISE-NUTRINT is the establishment of the Africa Think Tank on Youth and Adolescent Health, hosted at the University of Ibadan Research Foundation in collaboration with the African Academy of Public Health in Tanzania. This think tank aims to drive innovative research and policy development to address critical health challenges faced by adolescents and youths in Africa.
Through these comprehensive efforts, ARISE-NUTRINT strives to foster a generation of nutrition-fluent adolescents, equipped to make informed dietary choices, thereby reducing the prevalence of nutrition-related NCDs and promoting long-term health across the continent.