Hyderabad: With 41 million obese individuals India ranks third in the world in obesity after the US and China, according to the Global Burden of Disease Study published in the Lancet.
The study has found that the number of overweight and obese individuals globally has increased from 857 million in 1980 to 2.1 billion in 2013. This shows that one-third of the world’s population is obese.
The fear aired in medical circles in India that it is on the brink of an obesity epidemic finds confirmation in this report. The study found that one in five Indian men and women are either overweight or obese. In India obesity is not recognised as a national health hazard.
Dr K.S. Lakshmi, a bariatric and metabolic surgeon explained, “The biggest challenge is to make people understand that obesity is a disease. This is not being understood as they think that being fat is healthy. The need of the hour is to create awareness among the overweight who are still not obese."
"Over-weight means having 8 to 10 kg more than required. If this group can be checked the rate of obesity can be cut. But at present only the obese are seeking help. The overweight are not paying attention to reducing weight.”
Due to this reason most doctors are now advising a change in food habits. Dr I. Srivenu, a gastroenterologist at the Indo-American Cancer Institute explained, “It is not that we are more hungry than what we were earlier. It is because we are eating more tasty food whose fat and sugar content is high.”
The biggest problem is that the public has developed a taste for foods which are high in saturated fats, sodium and sugars but low in fresh fruits, vegetables, grains, fibre and calcium. Sugar is one of the major reasons for obesity in children.
“We need to cultivate a taste for fruits, vegetables and cereals in children. These do not have high oil content or chemical flavours. It is important to do this as childhood obesity is a major problem. Sugary drinks are harming children,” says nutritionist Sujatha Stephen of Care Hospitals.
Walking short distances, doing daily chores and being active throughout the day are no longer in vogue as too many gadgets are available to make life easy.
Those who work out for 45 minutes cannot afford to have a sedentary life for the remaining part of the day as it does not help. Dr Abdul Khaliq says, “A short walk around the office at midday is helpful.
A lot of people are now doing desk jobs where they have to sit for long hours but a break every 30 minutes is a must. The best thing is to take the stairs as it keeps the body fit.”
The problem is now that even for going short distances most people have given up walking. Earlier going to the market and other chores was done walking but that has now changed. Apart from this, alcohol consumption have found social acceptance in society.
Dr Venugopal Pareek, bariatric surgeon says, “The Increase in the obesity levels is due to binging between drinks. Most cases of overweight in the age group of 35 to 40 is due to this.”
The increase in bad cholesterol, moving fat in the blood, diabetes and cardiovascular problems are on the rise due to increasing obesity. The onset of many diseases was earlier thought to be due to diabetes but it has now changed to obesity.
Afew healthy pointers that will help keep obesity in control
1) Body Mass Index must not be over 37.5
2) When the Body Mass Index touches 32.5 the problems of hypertension, diabetes, heart diseases, joint problems are seen.
3) Exercise is the best way to reduce weight but it must be done slowly and once reduced the maintenance period is very long hence the exercise regime must be continued.
4) Brisk walking, swimming and running are good forms to reduce weight. Aerobics, dance and even yoga are considered good forms of weight reduction.
5) Exercise and diet go hand-in-hand and if a proper balance between the two can be maintained a substantial amount of weight can be reduced.
