A/HRC/26/31 B. Women 39. Unhealthy foods are commonly marketed in gendered ways, perpetuating traditional and unequal gender dynamics to the disadvantage of women. Despite the increase in dualincome or female-breadwinner households, women still bear a disproportionate share of household duties, particularly in preparing meals. This leads to the increased consumption of highly-processed convenience foods, as women have less time but are still expected to be responsible for food provision.59 Food advertisements often target women about providing cooked meals for their children or by offering aspirational products that are “improved” over traditional diets. 40. Other marketing messages targeted at women may emphasize sexuality and unattainable “desirable” body types to promote unhealthy foods, which not only perpetuate gender stereotypes but also have a negative impact on both physical health, such as dietrelated NCDs, and mental health, such as eating disorders.60 41. Food policies that emphasize home cooking to improve diets must take into account these gender and labour-force dynamics. Healthy eating programmes should not focus solely on mothers, but must also promote the role of men in food preparation, as well as take into account a diverse range of family arrangements. C. Low-income groups 42. Although NCDs are often perceived as “diseases of affluence”, the relationship between income and diet-related risk factors is complex.61 Studies have suggested that after a country reaches a per-capita gross domestic product of US$ 2,500, obesity becomes more prevalent in lower-income than higher-income groups,62 while consumption of unhealthy food is strongly associated with both lower income and lower levels of education in several developed and middle-income countries.63 The perception that NCDs affect only the wealthy has led to the neglect of the diseases in health policies for low-income persons, to the detriment of their right to health.64 43. Low-income groups frequently have poorer diets than other sections of the population,65 as healthy foods like fresh fruit and vegetables may be unaffordable for them, discouraging their consumption.66 Many low-income groups, such as shift workers, also 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 Patricia Allen and Carolyn Sacks, “Women and food chains: the gendered politics of food”, International Journal of Sociology of Food and Agriculture, vol. 15, No. 1 (2007), pp. 9–10. Ibid., pp. 2–4. Food Research and Action Center, “Do the data show a link between obesity and poverty?”, fall 2010, available from http://frac.org/wpcontent/uploads/2010/09/do_data_show_obesity_poverty_link_brief.pdf; Carlos A. Monteiro et al., “Socioeconomic status and obesity in adult populations of developing countries: a review”, Bulletin of the World Health Organization, vol. 82, No. 12 (December 2004), pp. 940–946. “Socioeconomic status and obesity in adult populations of developing countries” (see footnote above); WHO, A Framework to Monitor and Evaluate Implementation: a Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health (Geneva, 2008), para. 8. See WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific, Non-Communicable Disease and Poverty: the Need for Pro-Poor Strategies in the Western Pacific Region: a Review (Geneva, 2007), pp. 29–32. Ibid., pp. 8–9. Nicole Darmon and Adam Drewnowski, “Does social class predict diet quality?”, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 87, No. 5 (May 2008), pp 1107–1117. Mayuree Rao et al., “Do healthier foods and diet patterns cost more than less healthy options? A systematic review and meta-analysis”, BMJ Open, vol. 3, No. 12 (2013). 15