Ayoub Al Jawaldeh

World Health Organization WHO - EMRO · Nutrition

Diabetes is a major non-communicable disease (NCD) with significant global health implications. Beyond its direct effects, diabetes is often accompanied by a range of comorbidities, such as obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), kidney diseases, nerve damage, and cer- tain types of cancer, which increase the risk of mo...

Background: The World Health Organization recommends taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) as part of costeffective interventions to prevent diet-related noncommunicable diseases. Aim: To analyse the adoption and implementation of SSBs taxation in Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates and its impact on obesity rates. Methods: Using a semi-struc...

Background: Significant attention is being given to the role of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in the increasing rates of obesity and diet-related noncommunicable diseases in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR). Aim: To document the different approaches being used by EMR countries in implementing the sugar-sweetened beverages taxation. Methods...

Hypertension, or elevated blood pressure (BP), remains a leading cause of global death and disabilityfrom cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and strokes. It is commonly referred to as the “silent killer”,often presenting without symptoms, and potentially leading to heart attacks, heart failure, strokesand end-stage kidney disease. The major risk factor...

Nutritionally-managed genetic disorders encompass a wide range of conditions in which dietaryinterventions play a critical role in managing or mitigating the effects of genetic abnormalities. Thesedisorders range from inborn errors of metabolism, such as glutaric acidaemia, to inherited metabolicdiseases and congenital disorders of glycosylation. T...

This research seeks to enhance the understanding of the multifaceted drivers of food and nutrition insecurity in emergency-affected countries within the Eastern Mediterranean region and investigate the dynamics of food and nutrition security in countries facing emerging emergencies. This is a descriptive aim to determine the key factors and challen...

Traditional Lebanese cuisine is based on traditional dishes, where Arabic sweets play an important role in daily consumption. This study focuses on the evaluation of total fibers and trace elements, especially vitamins A, D, E, and C of traditional foods and Arabic sweets commonly consumed in Lebanon by chemical analysis. A total of thirty types of...

Online food delivery applications (OFDAs) have seen a surge in popularity during the COVID-19 Pandemic, particularly among young adults. This study aimed to assess the use of OFDAs and the perception of food healthiness and safety among university students in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). A web-based cross-sectional study was conducted among univ...

Background Early-life food consumption patterns may affect children’s health by increasing susceptibility to developing non-communicable chronic diseases (NCDs) in adulthood. Aims To evaluate Jordanian children and adolescents’ energy and macronutrient intake and how closely they adhere to dietary recommendations. Methods This cross-sectional study...

Iodine deficiency (ID) is a significant global public health issue, particularly affecting low-income countries. The iodization of salt is a widely adopted method to prevent iodine deficiency. This study aimed to assess the iodine content of iodized salt at the market level in various cities within the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan (HKJ). We collecte...

Cancer is a complex disease stemming from multiple interactions between genes and the environment, and is regarded as a primary contributor to global mortality. It is a condition in which the irregular and uncontrolled growth and proliferation of certain cells interferes with normal tissue function and has the potential to spread throughout the bod...

In the original publication [...]

Background Jordan faces various malnutrition challenges, including undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, overweight, obesity, and diet-related non-communicable diseases. The country has shifted from issues of undernutrition to rising rates of overweight and obesity, while still dealing with micronutrient deficiencies. The 2010 national survey...

Special needs is a broad term that includes numerous conditions, such as children born with congenital conditions such as cerebral palsy, to a woman with chronic arthritis, to elderly individuals dealing with dementia, to anyone who lost one or more of their motor limbs in an accident or war. Approximately 16% of the world’s population have special...

Background: Food insecurity significantly impacts children’s health, affecting their development across cognitive, physical, and socio-emotional dimensions. This study explores the impact of food insecurity among children aged 6 months to 5 years, focusing on nutrient intake and its relationship with various forms of malnutrition. Methods: Utilizin...

Food insecurity is a public health concern that affects children worldwide, yet it represents a particular burden for low- and middle-income countries. This study aims to utilize machine learning to identify the associations between food insecurity and nutrient intake among children aged 5 to 18 years. The study’s sample encompassed 1040 participan...

The widespread destruction and the devastating humanitarian toll caused by the ongoing war on Gaza have transformed this besieged Strip into a place of death and despair. This review will explore the implications of this war for food security, focusing on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2, which seeks to fight malnutrition and food insecurity an...

In the midst of conflict, the plight of vulnerable populations often remains hidden beneath the rubble and chaos. However, the recent escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip has thrust the dire humanitarian situation into the spotlight, particularly highlighting the devastating impact on children. Prior to the current conflict, more than 75% of th...

Vitamin D is an essential, fat-soluble micronutrient that is either naturally present in few foods, added intentionally to some foods or found in dietary supplements. It plays numerous vital roles in the maintenance of the organ systems in the human body, in addition to its known role in bone health maintenance by facilitating the absorption of cal...

Anemia, a condition defined by deficiency in the size or number of red blood cells (RBCs), or a lower-than-normal level of hemoglobin within the RBCs, is a multifactorial condition whereby numerous factors may contribute to its development. The main factors include inadequate nutrition, poor nutrient absorption, deficiencies in essential micronutri...

Introduction This cross-sectional study aimed to assess Online food delivery applications (OFDA) usage trends among adolescent users in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), focusing on their perceptions of healthy food options and food safety (n = 532). Methods Sociodemographic information, frequency of OFDA use, factors affecting food choices, and per...

Food composition data in the Eastern Mediterranean Region countries are often lacking, obsolete, or unreliable. The study aims to provide reliable nutrient data on food products consumed in Oman in order to evaluate their nutritional quality, the consistency of the nutrition labeling and claims, and, ultimately, the use for food consumption surveys...

Food composition data in the EMR countries are often lacking, obsolete or unreliable. The study aims to provide reliable and up-to-date nutrient data of selected food products consumed in Oman in order to evaluate consistency of nutrition labelling and update the current used food composition database. Contents of total fat, fatty acids, carbohydra...

Background Early-life food consumption patterns may affect children’s health by increasing susceptibility to developing non-communicable chronic diseases (NCDs) in adulthood. Aims To evaluate Jordanian children and adolescents’ energy and macronutrient intake and how closely they adhere to dietary recommendations. Methods This cross-sectional stu...

Food labels are low-cost, informational tools that can help curb the spread of diet-related non-communicable diseases. This study described consumers’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to food labels in Jordan and explored the relationship between knowledge and attitude with comprehensive use of food labels. A cross-sectional, online surv...

This systematic review aims at documenting government-led school nutrition programs/interventions in countries of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR). A systematic review of the available literature on this topic was conducted between 25 October 2022 and 15 November 2022 using 15 electronic databases as well as grey literature. The search was li...

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the fragility of the global food system, sending shockwaves across countries' societies and economy. This has presented formidable challenges to sustaining a healthy and resilient lifestyle. The objective of this study is to examine the food consumption patterns and assess diet diversity indicators, pri...

To assist in providing a robust regional set of data and international comparisons, a systematic review was conducted to identify and characterize food baskets (FBs) in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) countries. Electronic databases of peer-reviewed literature, including PubMed, Scopus, ISI/WOS and Google Scholar, and also, online grey liter...

Keywords: Knowledge; Attitudes; Practices; Salt intake.

Background : To evaluate the energy and macronutrient intake of Jordanian children and adolescents, and how closely they adhere to dietary recommendations. Methods: This cross-sectional study used data from Jordan's Population-based Food Consumption Survey, a household population-based study that was conducted in Jordan between 2021-2022 (561 child...

Unlabelled: The World Food Conference in 1974 emphasized the significance of establishing global nutrition surveillance to monitor and address nutritional challenges effectively. However, many countries, especially in the EMRO region, continue to encounter substantial difficulties in regularly generating disaggregated data on nutrition. The curren...

Background and Objectives: Despite several national surveys in the country, there has been no food and nutrition surveillance (FNS) system by far to integrate and analyze data obtained from different related sources for root finding of nutrition problems and help decision-making at the national level. Materials and Methods: FNS conceptual framework...

Energy and macronutrient intakes in Jordan: a population study Huda Al Hourani 1*, Buthaina Alkhatib 1, Islam Al‑Shami 1, Amin N. Olaimat 1, Murad Al‑Holy 1, Narmeen Jamal Al‑Awwad 1, Mahmoud Abughoush 2, Nada A. Saleh 1, Dima AlHalaika 1, Omar Alboqai 3 & Ayoub Al‑Jawaldeh 4 Jordan has never conducted a nutrition survey to determine nutrient and...

Jordan has never conducted a nutrition survey to determine nutrient and energy intakes. The current study aimed to describe the energy and macronutrient consumed by the Jordanian population. A cross-sectional food consumption study was conducted, including a sample of Jordanians using two non-consecutive 24-h dietary recalls (24-h DR) between Octob...

The traditional Middle Eastern diet has been typically described as a nutritionally balanced diet, given its abundance in fresh fruits, vegetables and unprocessed grains. It was also reported to have a healthy fatty acid profile, being low in saturated fats, and high in monounsaturated fats and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. As people in the...

Background Food insecurity, occupation, and poverty contribute to the poor nutritional status of Palestine. This review study aimed to analyze the nutritional status in the Palestinian Territory by analyzing published data from 2011 to 2023. Method Searching for relevant publications yielded 67 studies. Based on reviewing these studies, five major...

Background: The ratios of fatty acids in different diets and their connection to chronic diseases including obesity and CVD have been researched. The current study set out to detect the dietary fatty acid patterns among Jordanian adults and their relationships with obesity indices. Methods: The data of 1096 adults were extracted from a household...

The impact of food consumption extends well beyond the physical aspect of health to affect the mind, the society, and the environment. The biopsycho-ecological (BSE) theory recognizes the interplay between these factors and emphasizes the need for a holistic perspective to dietary recommendations. This manuscript presents a situation analysis of fo...

Nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and good practices are essential for preventing malnutrition, ensuring good health, and maintaining life quality. However, to the best of our knowledge, no studies have been published on the nutritional knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAPs) of Jordanian older people. For this reason, our study aimed to assess th...

Trans fatty acids (TFAs) consumption has been unequivocally associated with several adverse health effects. In fact, consuming TFAs in amounts greater than 2% of total energy intake (TEI) is associated with a 23% increase in cardiovascular risk. To reduce TFA-related morbidity and mortality, several countries have imposed voluntary or mandatory mea...

Background: Excessive sodium (Na) and insufficient potassium (K) intake contribute to a high risk of cardiovascular events. Morocco lacks data on actual Na and K intake in adults. We estimated mean Na and K intake in a Moroccan population of adults residing in the Northwest region using 24-h urinary excretion and examined their association with bl...

Malnutrition takes a heavy toll on the populations of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR), with gender related socioeconomic risk factors impacting undernutrition and obesity in both women and men. This perspective article, a derivative of a report by the World Health Organization, reviews the scientific literature on the effect of gender on mal...

(1) Background: Nutrition for optimum growth and physical development is acquired by adequate infant feeding practices. (2) Methods: One hundred seventeen different brands of infant formulas (n = 41) and baby food products (n = 76) were selected from the Lebanese market and were analyzed for their nutritional content. (3) Results: Saturated fatty a...

Diet quality is a limiting factor to micronutrients sufficiency. The aim of this work is to evaluate, through chemical analysis, the dietary fibers and micronutrients content for vitamin A, D, E and C and their contributions to daily values in frequently consumed traditional dishes and Arabic sweets in Lebanon. Thirty types of traditional Lebanese...

Background: One of the factors influencing health and well-being is dietary patterns. Data on food consumption are necessary for evaluating and developing community nutrition policies. Few studies on Jordanians' food consumption and dietary habits at various ages have been conducted, despite the increased prevalence of overweight, obesity, and chr...

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) is suffering from a double burden of malnutrition in which undernutrition coexists with rising rates of overweight and obesity. Although the countries of the EMR vary greatly in terms of income level, living conditions and health challenges, the nutrition status is often discu...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an...

This review study aimed to assess the nutrition situation in the UAE using published data from 2010 to 2022. It highlights the gaps and challenges that prevail in addressing the nutrition-related problems in the UAE and the opportunities that have been overlooked. The available literature indicates that the UAE is burdened with more than one form o...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...

This detailed and comprehensive study examines nutrition and health in the World Health Organization (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region, presenting the six game-changing food systems actions proposed by the WHO and the progress of their implementation in the region. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is a particularly complex place to study: an a...