Boyd Swinburn

Talking about the negative impacts our current food systems have on health, equity and the environment can be quite depressing so I always try to finish with hopeful positive messages.

Great Lancet editorial on UPFs—except the claim that policies targeting all UPFs are unrealistic due to their vast number. Maybe true in UK/US, where UPFs dominate. But in most countries, real food still prevails—or UPFs are just starting to rise. Yet! thelancet.com/journals/landi…

Answers to a few questions from @bigfatsurprise about incidences of censorship I recently experienced at NIH: 1. My request was denied by HHS to present an invited keynote talk on my ultra-processed food (UPF) research at the Bloomberg Philanthropies annual Food Policy Program…

📢 WEBINAR | 1 May | 12–1pm NZ has no rules for lobbying. No register. No code. No oversight. We'll explore why we need reform — and why those who benefit from this lack of transparency are unlikely to want change. 🎟 Register: bit.ly/LevelLobbyingW… #LevelThePlayingField

Great paper! Confirms negative effects on health of food additives (one likely mechanism of negative effect of UPF) and adds the finding of association of clusters of additives with risk of diabetes beyond individual effects. @inspmx @1CINyS @BoydSwinburn @PhilBakerNZ

Excellent initiative launched by @bryce_edwards - just the type of detailed information needed for a lobby register. Coinciding with and complementing the launch of @HealthCoA #LevelthePlayingField campaign with @HelenClarkFound and @NZTransparency

Amazing speakers discussing strengthening public policymaking - more public policy for public good not private profit. ⁦@HelenClarkNZ⁩, ⁦@AnneTolleyMP⁩, Chris Finlayson (via zoom), Moana Tuwhare at the launch of ⁦@HealthCoA⁩ ‘Level the Playing Field campaign.

‘According to international guidelines, lunch should provide 30% of a student’s daily energy requirements. “What we found was that these meals had about 15 percent of the energy that a child needs for a day,” said Dr Sally Mackay’ 1news.co.nz/2025/03/29/nz-…

Some shocking results in this survey. Do you know what people on benefits actually get? rnz.co.nz/news/national/…

There are actions which can restore the integrity of public policy making and bring back the public’s lost trust in government. Join @HealthCoA Level the Playing Field campaign @HelenClarkFound and @NZTransparency Launch April 7 healthcoalition.org.nz/campaigns/regu…

A third of preventable premature death and illness is caused by unhealthy food, alcohol and tobacco. A fundamental role of doctors is to respond to these issues. This government’s approach to prevention has been retrograde (tobacco, school lunches) or zero (alcohol, junk food)

Further proof that #NZ Minister of Health thinks health equates to healthcare, & has no understanding of the wider social & commercial determinants which influence health status. Obesogenic environments, for ex, have a profound impact on peoples’/communities’ health. @HealthCoA

A high-quality Framingham cohort study finds that high UPF consumption raises Alzheimer’s disease risk by 2.5x—showing a robust association even after accounting for potential reverse causality and misclassification, and controlling for key confounders. sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

"NZ glaciers shrink 29% since 2000, climate alarm raised". Unfortunately, nobody much is listening. Until voters and farmers start listening, the politicians have no room to move. Indeed, ACT and FRST rely on denialism. Some kind of catastrophe is needed! nzherald.co.nz/nz/nz-glaciers…

Privatisation of healthcare is such a bad idea - just check out the US where ‘the quickest way to get poor is to get sick’. Clear points from Renee Liang northandsouth.co.nz/2025/02/11/liv…

Felicidades @CMonteiro_USP, colega y amigo, por este merecido reconocimiento. La identificación del ultaprocesamiento como un factor clave en los daños a la salud de las dietas contemporáneas, ha cambiado el paradigma de la relación dieta y salud @inspmx @SBarquera @NUPENS_USP

Unfortunately doing research on the root causes of America’s terrible life expectancy means investigating those things now banned from research projects eg institutional racism, structural inadequacies, commercial determinants etc

Many toddler foods aren't what they seem. The food industry is misleading new parents with their marketing — it’s unacceptable. Huge thanks to the ABC for help exposing this issue. Australia, it's time to put children's health first. bit.ly/4aZxGXR #KidsAreSweetEnough

🇧🇷Brazilian President Lula announces that ≥ 85% of the 2025 federal budget for public school meals—serving 10 million children in 150,000 schools—must be allocated to raw or minimally processed foods and freshly prepared meals (≥ 90% in 2026). gov.br/planalto/pt-br…