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Obesity.. Financial and human losses as well!

Sami Al Riyami

reyami@emaratalyoum.comsamialreyami

August 24, 2021

Obesity is a serious health problem, and it is true that it is a global problem, as reports issued by the World Health Organization indicate that more than 1.4 billion adults are overweight, more than half a billion suffer from obesity, and there are 40 million children under five who are overweight around the world, but we In the Emirates, we suffer from it as well, and we need radical solutions to spread the culture of a healthy lifestyle for all citizens and residents, especially since the problem of obesity is not a personal problem, but rather its repercussions affect the overall health system in any country in the world.

Many may not imagine that the losses of obesity and human overweight, before financial, are very high, as reports from the World Health Organization have shown that the numbers of people with obesity have doubled, and it is beginning to take epidemic proportions all over the world, and it is standing, along with weight gain, behind the death of at least About 2.6 million people each year.

In the UAE, we find that one out of four people is obese, and the most prominent reason for the spread of obesity is a change in lifestyle, which is currently based on lack of movement, eating meals with high calories, and without health benefits, and for information, the cost of treating obesity and related diseases is very high. , while the cost of obesity prevention requires only spreading awareness and a culture of sports, and organizing food in a healthy and beneficial manner.

Almost two years ago, the Ministry of Health and Community Protection announced the results of the latest national health survey, which was launched under the slogan “My health is a priority,” and included 10 thousand families of citizens and residents, and achieved a high response rate of 94%, which included a variety of indicators, according to the standards of the Health Organization. Global, covering indicators of the UAE’s national agenda related to health, and the indicators included: diet and physical activity, cervical cancer screening, physical measurements, diabetes, cholesterol, cardiovascular diseases, and tobacco.

The numbers do not lie, and they clearly express the existence of a general problem, which can only be solved by the concerted efforts of many institutions, but before the efforts of institutions, there are personal efforts that fall on the shoulders of each individual and every family. Health is a priority for the person himself, and he has the responsibility to preserve it before any In detail, the results of the health survey showed that the prevalence of diabetes among adults over 18 years of age reached 11.8%, and indicated that the percentage of adults over 18 years of age who suffer from high levels of total cholesterol reached 43.7%. .

The percentage of adults over 18 years of age who have high blood pressure reached 28.8%, up from 14.7% in 2010. The results of the health survey indicated that the percentage of obesity among adults over 18 years old reached 27.8%.

It is true that it decreased compared to 2010, after it was 37.2%, which is a good indicator that confirms the success of awareness and education campaigns, but the percentage is still high, and we need to reduce it further, because obesity is a major cause of other diseases.

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