The World Health Organisation has declared it a global epidemic and worldwide public health crisis. Facts based on WHO statistics 2022 state that one in eight people in the world were living with obesity. Worldwide adult obesity has more than doubled since 1990, and adolescent obesity has quadrupled. What is more alarming is the trends and projections in children and adolescents. There has been, and will continue to be, a steady rise and by 2035, nearly 700,000 children and adolescents will be living with overweight or obesity
The obesity levels in the GCC countries, including the UAE, are among the highest in the world. Majority of the expatriate population that lives in the UAE and the GCC is from India and other countries like the Philippines, are really high on the obesity index. Coupled with this is the local population where there is a very high incidence of diabetes and obesity.
Economic impact
The economic impact of overweight and obesity includes treatment costs. There are also indirect costs such as absenteeism, presenteeism and premature mortality that make up the bulk of negative economic impact. In 2019, healthcare expenditure amounted to $1.4 billion, which is expected to rise to $1.9 billion by 2035. Premature death, absenteeism and presenteeism cost $10.3 billion in 2019, set to rise to $30.7 billion in 2035.
Laziness, sedentary lifestyle, and lack of discipline and patience is leading many to find a quick-fix. The growing popularity of weight loss drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro, and Wegovy raise concerns about sustainability, and holistic health approaches.
Many people taking these drugs/injections experience gastrointestinal issues that can include nausea, vomiting, constipation, diarrhea and heartburn compromised immune system and lack of essential vitamins.
Next alternative
What happens when one reaches the recommended weight? Does one stop taking weight-loss drugs? But, have you altered your food habits, taste buds and more or were you just reducing the quantity? Expect the effects to wear off over several weeks. This means you might have a bigger appetite, and you may feel hungry again more quickly after a meal. As a result, some weight gain is common after you stop the drugs!
What’s the next alternative, another quick-fix, bariatric surgery? Weight loss surgery done on your digestive system, either through making your stomach smaller, a gastric bypass, or through removing a part of your stomach, technically known as a gastric sleeve surgery?
A random check of the shopping carts of most shoppers at any supermarket will reveal loads of sugar in various forms, ice creams, chocolates, candy, cereals, cola, flavoured yoghurts flavoured milks, diluted fruit juice concentrates! Then come the hidden sugars found in ketchup, jarred pasta sauce, barbecue sauce, and salad dressing.
Popular with ‘weight watchers’ protein bars or yoghurt: though a good way to add protein, some of them have high amounts of added sugars. These sweeteners have been linked to an abundance of health issues, including fatty liver syndrome, insulin resistance and diabetes.
Added sugars
The best way to tell if your foods contain added sugars is to read the ingredients/nutrition labels. There are a lot of different words for sugar, like high-fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, molasses, caramel, juice, honey or agave. In addition to these words, most ingredients that end with ‘ose’ contain sugar, like glucose, fructose, lactose, maltose, dextrose, and sucrose.
What’s important is the quality and quantity of food we put in our body, the ‘information’ that quickly changes our metabolism and genes. If we actually ate nutritious food we would automatically be eating less food because our system would absorb the elements necessary to create a healthy body.
BLURB:
Laziness, sedentary lifestyle, and lack of discipline and patience is leading many to find a quick-fix. The growing popularity of weight loss drugs raise concerns about sustainability and holistic health approaches.