By Macon Ramos Araneta

WHILE boiling is the most com mon method of food preparation among Filipino household, the problem facing healthy lifestyle advocates is what is consumed outside the home? fast food that usually has saturated fats and oils.

Educating the public on making proper food choices remains the biggest hurdle facing the Health Department as it relaunches the Healthy Lifestyle to the Max program that it hopes will catch the Filipino?s attention this time and lessen the incidence of obesity, diabetes and other lifestyle-related diseases.

?Many Filipinos don?t know better because we don?t ask for options,? said Frances Prescilla Cuevas, national program manager of the degenerative disease office of the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control (NCDPC), at the launch of the Healthy Lifestyle to the Max program of the department.

Part of the program is the issuance of certificates of compliance to restaurants who will follow the department recommendations for salt and fat content of fast food items such as french fries, hamburgers and fried chicken..

At the launch of the program, Cuevas said that Goldilocks, Tokyo Tokyo, Chowking, Jollibee and Wendy?s were among the first fast food restaurants who have expressed interest in complying with the new standard.

?Those establishments who are certified will have the seal of the DoH, saying that they have passed the compliance test. More people will probably buy food that has been approved by the DoH,? Cuevas also said.

Under the program, the Health Department recommends seven healthy lifestyle habits, which include saying no to tobacco, no to drinking alcohol, no to illegal drugs, eating low-fat, low-salt and high-fiber diet, preventing hypertension, engaging in physical activities and managing stress.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III disclosed that non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) are killing six out of 10 people globally while in low to middle-income countries, four out of five people are dying from such diseases.