Commission Recommendation on the JPI "Health"

01DESCRIPTION

Commission Recommendation  on the research Joint Programming Initiative "A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life".

Executive Summary
The Commission proposes more strategic cooperation between EU Member States on research and development to address major societal challenges. One way to do this is the new "Joint Programming" approach. Joint  Programming involves Member States engaging in defining, developing and implementing strategic research agendas (SRA). "A Healthy Diet for a Healthy Life" has been proposed as one such Joint Programming Initiative. Health is a key driver for Europe’s growth and prosperity. Putting in place cost-effective measures to improve citizens’ state of health will result in economic benefits for society and improvements in future productivity and competitiveness. The last three decades have seen the levels of overweight and obesity in the EU population rise dramatically, particularly among children. This is indicative of a worsening trend of poor diet and low physical activity across the EU population which will increase the prevalence of chronic conditions. In the long term, this will have a negative impact on life expectancy in the EU and reduce quality of life, not to mention the associated health costs.