African Currents

How Are Western Diets Making Africa Sick?

18:44, 7 May 2025
Chimauchem Nwosu
All materials
A recent groundbreaking study reveals that Africans adopting Western diets high in processed foods, sugars, and fats face inflammation, weakened immunity, and preventable diseases, igniting urgent calls to reclaim nutrient-rich traditional indigenous diets.
Sputnik
Based in Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro region—a sharp contrast of urban processed-food influx and rural agrarian traditions—novel research reveals the hidden toll of dietary Westernization. Researchers tracked young men switching from ancestral diets (rich in fermented mbege, leafy greens, and whole grains) to calorie-dense junk food, observing increased inflammation and immune dysfunction within weeks. Yet when participants reverted to traditional meals, their bodies rebounded: gut microbiomes came alive, inflammation plummeted, and immune responses surged. The findings, published in Nature Medicine, spotlight Africa’s culinary heritage not as a relic of the past but as a potent antidote to a rising tide of diet-driven diseases.
In a recent interview with African Currents, Dr. Godfrey Temba, a researcher at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College (KCMUC), discussed findings from his team’s study on the health impacts of traditional African diets as opposed to Western-style diets.

"This project only focused on young men aged 20 to 40. And the reason is just to have a homogenous population as much as possible and to reduce biological variability [...]. When participants reverted to a traditional African diet [...] we observed a rapid decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines [...] improved antimicrobial response [...] and a shift in key metabolic enzymes [...]. The immune cells regained their balance, reducing inflammation [...]. This indicates improved immune functions and metabolic health [...]. Ignoring traditional African food means we miss low-cost, locally available solutions to rising rates of diabetes and heart diseases [...]. Researching and documenting the health benefits of African diets is critical to fighting the epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Africa," Dr. Temba explained.

To find out what else our guest had to say, tune in to the African Currents podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
In addition to the website, you can also catch our episodes on Telegram.
► You can also listen to our podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Deezer, Pocket Casts, Afripods, Podcast Addict.
► Check out all the episodes of African Currents.
African CurrentsPodcastsSputnik AfricaAfricaTanzaniaCentral AfricaEast AfricaSouthern AfricaNorth AfricaWest Africa