Privacy Policy

Last updated: 12 August 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how The Glycemic Index Foundation of South Africa (“GI Foundation SA”, “we”, “us” or “our”) collects, uses, stores and protects personal information when you visit or use www.smarthealthdiet.co.za and www.smarthealthdiet.com (collectively, the “Websites”).

We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”) and other applicable South African law.

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information collected through our Websites, including information you provide when you sign up for our free resources, join the Smart Health Challenge, become a site member, comment on our content, contact us, or otherwise interact with our Websites.

1. Who is responsible for your personal information?

The responsible party for personal information processed through these Websites is:

The Glycemic Index Foundation of South Africa

Information Officer: Jan Delport
Email: jan@gifoundation.com
Postal address: PostNet Suite #88, Private Bag X11326, Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, 1200

If you have questions about how we process your personal information, or wish to exercise any of your privacy rights, please contact our Information Officer using the details above.

2. What personal information do we collect?

The information we collect depends on how you interact with the Websites.

Information you provide directly

When you sign up for a free download, the Smart Health Challenge, or another resource, we may collect:

Your name
Your email address

When you register as a site member or comment on a blog post, we may collect:

Your name
Your email address
Information associated with your site-member account
Your comments and other information you choose to provide

If you contact us, we may collect your name, email address and the contents of your communication.

Health information

Health information is treated differently from ordinary website information because health information is classified as special personal information under POPIA.

We do not ask you to provide your health information through our public Websites, Gumroad checkout pages, or ordinary website forms.

Where health information is required for a consultation, assessment, programme or other professional service, it is collected separately through a confidential Google document or another specifically designated confidential process.

Health information may include information such as your medical history, health conditions, medications, blood glucose information, cholesterol, blood pressure, weight or other information relevant to providing nutrition-related services.

We only collect and use such information where there is a lawful basis to do so and where it is reasonably necessary for the relevant service or purpose.

3. Information collected automatically

When you visit our Websites, certain information may be collected automatically through analytics and similar technologies.

This may include:

IP address
Browser and device information
Operating system
General location information
Pages visited
Time spent on pages
How you arrived at our Websites
Website interactions and usage patterns
Technical information about your visit

We use Wix Analytics and Google Analytics to help us understand how visitors use our Websites and improve our content, resources and user experience. We do not use advertising pixels on our Websites.

4. Cookies and similar technologies

Our Websites may use cookies and similar technologies.

Cookies are small files stored on your device that can help a website remember information about your visit and understand how the website is being used.

We may use cookies for purposes such as:

Website functionality
Site-member functionality
Analytics
Understanding how visitors use our Websites
Improving website performance and user experience

Some cookies may be placed by third-party services that provide functionality or analytics for our Websites.

You can generally control or disable cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect how some parts of the Websites function.

5. Why do we collect your personal information?

Depending on how you interact with us, we may process your personal information for purposes including:

Providing you with free downloads, meal plans and other resources
Providing access to the Smart Health Challenge
Managing site-member accounts
Allowing registered members to comment on blog posts
Responding to enquiries
Providing nutrition-related services
Processing purchases and appointments
Sending requested information and resources
Sending newsletters and other communications where permitted by law
Understanding how our Websites are used
Improving our Websites, content, products and services
Maintaining the security and functionality of our Websites
Keeping appropriate records
Complying with legal and regulatory obligations
Establishing, exercising or defending legal rights where necessary

We aim to collect only information that is reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.

6. Email marketing and communications

We use Sender.net as our email marketing platform.

When you voluntarily provide your name and email address to receive a free resource, join the Smart Health Challenge, subscribe to our communications or otherwise request information from us, your information may be processed by Sender.net on our behalf.

Our emails may include educational content, health and nutrition information, updates, offers, products, services and other communications relevant to Smart Health Diet.

Where required by POPIA, we will obtain consent before sending direct marketing by electronic communication. POPIA generally prohibits unsolicited electronic direct marketing unless the required consent exists or a permitted customer exception applies.

Every marketing email should contain an unsubscribe mechanism. You may unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time.

Unsubscribing from marketing emails will not necessarily prevent us from sending essential administrative or transactional communications relating to a service you have requested or purchased.

7. Purchases and appointments

We use Gumroad to sell books and other products and to facilitate appointment bookings.

Payments are processed through the payment facilities provided by Gumroad and its payment-processing partners.

We do not intentionally collect or store your full payment-card details on our Websites.

When you purchase a product or book an appointment through Gumroad, information necessary to process your transaction may be collected and processed by Gumroad and relevant payment providers in accordance with their own privacy policies and terms.

We recommend reviewing the privacy policies of these third-party providers before using their services.

8. Health information and confidentiality

We understand that health information is particularly sensitive.

Health information submitted through our confidential Google document process is used only for the purposes for which it was collected, such as providing nutrition-related assessment, advice or services.

We will take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect health information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration or destruction.

Access to health information will be limited to people who reasonably require access for the relevant service or purpose.

We will not sell your health information.

We will not publish identifiable health information without an appropriate lawful basis and, where required, your consent.

POPIA specifically recognises health information as special personal information and provides additional protections around its processing.

9. Testimonials and case studies

From time to time, we may publish testimonials, stories or case studies from people who have used our products or services.

Where a testimonial or case study relates to a real patient or client, we will only use identifiable information with the appropriate permission or another lawful basis.

We may edit testimonials for length, clarity or formatting without changing their meaning.

Where appropriate, we may remove or alter identifying details to protect a person's privacy.

10. Sharing personal information with third parties

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information.

We may share personal information with carefully selected service providers when reasonably necessary to operate our Websites or provide our services.

These may include:

Wix — website hosting and website functionality
Google Analytics — website analytics
Sender.net — email marketing and communications
Gumroad — product sales, appointment bookings and payment processing
Google — confidential health-information collection where you voluntarily submit information through our designated Google document process
Other professional or technical service providers where reasonably necessary

Where we use third-party service providers to process personal information on our behalf, we expect appropriate privacy and security protections to be in place.

We may also disclose personal information where required or permitted by law, including where necessary to comply with a legal obligation, court order, law-enforcement request, protect someone's health or safety, or establish, exercise or defend legal rights.

11. International processing

Some of the third-party service providers we use may store or process information outside South Africa.

Where personal information is transferred to or processed in another country, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer is permitted under applicable law and that appropriate safeguards are in place.

POPIA contains specific requirements concerning transfers of personal information to third parties in foreign countries, including additional considerations where special personal information is involved.

12. How we protect your information

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

Loss
Damage
Unauthorised access
Unauthorised disclosure
Unauthorised alteration
Misuse

However, no method of transmitting information over the internet or storing information electronically can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

You are responsible for keeping your account credentials, passwords and other access information confidential.

If you believe your personal information or account has been compromised, please get in touch with us as soon as possible at jan@gifoundation.com.

13. How long do we keep your information?

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.

The appropriate retention period may depend on:

The nature of the information
The purpose for which it was collected
Whether we have an ongoing relationship with you
Legal, accounting or regulatory requirements
Whether the information is required to establish, exercise or defend legal rights

When personal information is no longer reasonably required, we will take reasonable steps to securely delete, destroy or de-identify it.

14. Your rights under POPIA

Subject to applicable legal requirements and limitations, you may have the right to:

Ask whether we hold personal information about you
Request access to personal information we hold about you
Request correction or updating of inaccurate information
Request deletion of personal information where legally appropriate
Object to certain processing of your personal information
Object to the use of your personal information for direct marketing
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
Request information about how your personal information is being processed
Lodge a complaint about our handling of your personal information

The Information Regulator confirms that POPIA gives data subjects rights relating to their personal information, including rights of access and correction and the ability to lodge complaints.

To exercise a right or ask a privacy-related question, contact:

Jan Delport — Information Officer
The Glycemic Index Foundation of South Africa
Email: jan@gifoundation.com
Postal address: PostNet Suite #88, Private Bag X11326, Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, 1200

We may need to verify your identity before processing certain requests.

15. Direct marketing

We respect your right to control whether you receive marketing communications from us.

Where required by law, we will obtain your consent before sending direct marketing by electronic communication.

You can withdraw your consent or unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time.

If you unsubscribe, we will take reasonable steps to stop sending you marketing communications, although you may still receive necessary administrative or transactional communications.

The Information Regulator has specifically issued guidance concerning direct marketing under POPIA, including marketing by email, SMS and other electronic communications.

16. Children

Our Websites are not intentionally directed at young children.

Where we knowingly process personal information belonging to a child, we will do so only where permitted by applicable law and with the appropriate consent or other lawful basis.

We encourage parents and guardians to supervise children's use of the internet and to contact us if they believe a child has provided us with personal information without appropriate permission.

17. Third-party websites

Our Websites may contain links to websites operated by third parties.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices, security or content of those websites.

Once you leave our Websites, we recommend reviewing the privacy policy of the website you visit.

18. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to our Websites, services, technology, third-party providers or applicable law.

The updated version will be published on this page with a revised “Last updated” date.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

19. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, we encourage you to contact our Information Officer first so that we can investigate and attempt to resolve the matter.

You may also lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa.

The Information Regulator is the independent authority responsible for monitoring and enforcing compliance with POPIA.

Information Regulator of South Africa
Website: https://inforegulator.org.za/
Email: enquiries@inforegulator.org.za
Telephone: 010 023 5200

The Regulator also provides an online eServices portal for POPIA-related matters and complaints.

20. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how your personal information is handled, please contact:

The Glycemic Index Foundation of South Africa
Information Officer: Jan Delport
Email: jan@gifoundation.com
Postal address: PostNet Suite #88, Private Bag X11326, Nelspruit, Mpumalanga, 1200

Important note

This Privacy Policy is intended to provide a clear explanation of our privacy practices and our approach to compliance with POPIA. It should be reviewed by an appropriately qualified South African legal professional before publication to ensure that it accurately reflects the Foundation's legal structure, actual data-processing practices, contracts with third-party service providers, retention procedures and other applicable legal obligations.

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