The affected global population of corpulent individuals has increased to epidemic proportions. According to the World Health Organization, 2 billion adults worldwide are overweight with at least 650 million clinically obese. Worldwide obesity has nearly tripled since 1975. You are considered overweight when you have a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than or equal to 25 kg/m² and obesity is defined as a BMI greater than or equal to 30 kg/m².
What is concerning is that over 340 million children and adolescents aged 5-19 were overweight or obese in 2016. What was once considered a high-income country problem, overweight and obesity are now on the rise in low- and middle-income countries. Almost half of the children under 5 who were overweight or obese in 2019 lived in Asia.
Contrary to popular belief, only about one in 20 obese people suffers from a medical condition, which accounts for their obesity. For the rest, the fundamental cause of their obesity and being overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended.
Men usually look like “apples” when they put on weight, the excess weight going around the middle whereas women tend to look pear-shaped, the excess weight going onto their hips and thighs. Apples or pears, most people do not need anyone to tell them they are overweight; it is more a question of whether or not they choose to do anything about it provided they can. Supportive environments and communities are crucial to assist people’s choices, be it healthier food or regular physical activity. Although the extent to which obesity is linked to genes is a moot point, those who propound the genetic predisposition theory tend to believe that our genetic makeup defines the limits of our physiological control mechanisms.
While there is no magic solution, at the individual level, people can limit energy intake from total fats and sugars, increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, in particular, legumes, whole grains and nuts apart from engaging in regular physical activity. Individual responsibility can only be fully effective where people have access to a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, at the societal level, it is important to support individuals through sustained implementation of evidence-based and population-based policies that make regular physical activity and healthier dietary choices available, affordable and easily accessible, particularly to the poorest individuals.
All too true…but being consistent with exercise and resisting yummy food is also difficult.
Hilarious title Aunty! And I agree that the hardest thing about exercising as we get older is finding the time amidst all the other pressures- especially working hours. I reckon globally office hours should be reduced to 6 hours a day!