Fruits and vegetables are increasingly becoming an integral part of patients’ medication.
They are known to contain essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients that are needed for the proper functioning of most organs of the body, especially the brain and the heart.
I am yet to come across any health promotion message that does not recommend the daily intake of fruits and vegetables.
Not only must one take fruits and vegetables regularly but also the quantity taken is so important that experts recommend five portions of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis for optimum health.
This translates roughly to about five oranges or a combination of different fruits and vegetables, with each one being regarded as one of the five portions.
Problem analysis
But how do we get the fruits and vegetables?
To say that fruits and vegetables are very expensive to buy is to state the obvious.
In general, prices of fruits and food in general are very expensive compared to the salary of the average Ghanaian worker.
Experts say the average worker will spend almost all his earnings on food.
Indeed, the price of fruits and vegetables may even be more expensive than the drugs that have been prescribed with them.
Whereas the prescribed medication may be for a period of time, fruits and vegetables are a daily requirement.
Gone are the days when one would top up their food with fruits and vegetables when one was not satisfied after eating.
Today, you risk buying fruits and vegetables at the expense of the food you will eat.
It is, therefore, not enough to recommend fruits and vegetables for clients or patients without knowing how they will get them.
In my earlier article about steps to ensure a disease-free environment (refer Daily Graphic of May 4, 2016, p. 20), for example, I indicated that there cannot be a behavioural change if the enabling environment is not provided.
The health sector must ensure the availability of fruits and vegetables in order to complete its health promotion message.
Recommendation
To this end, it is recommended that all health institutions must have a fruits and vegetables unit where patients can go and collect their requirements at affordable prices, rather than letting them purchase from the open market, where financial accessibility may pose problems.
To ensure a continuous supply of fruits and vegetables at affordable prices, the health sector must collaborate with the agricultural sector to ensure that fruit and vegetable production is increased.
Efforts must be made to store and preserve fruits and vegetables during the season of plenty to ensure that they become available all year round.
The unmet need for fruits and vegetables is high, and the health sector, which is at the forefront of championing good health, must be prepared to invest in their production, procurement and distribution, the same way they do drugs, to ensure that the benefits inherent in the regular intake of fruits and vegetables are achieved.
The writer is the Medical Director,
Royal Medical Agency & Clinic
Email: kwakukesey@gmail.com
