With some 43 million children under the age of five being overweight or obese, obesity is now a global epidemic. It is a public health concern in the UAE as well.
“According to a recently published report in the medical journal The Lancet, 30.8 per cent of boys and 31.6 per cent of girls under the age of 20 are either overweight or obese in the UAE,” says Dr Muhammad Hamed Farooqi, Director and Consultant Endocrinologist, Dubai Diabetes Centre at Dubai Health Authority.
Obesity: Leading risk of death
Being overweight or obese is the leading risk of death globally.
According to the World Health Organisation, at least 3.4 million adults die every year as a result.
In addition, 44 per cent of the diabetes cases, 23 per cent of ischaemic heart disease cases and between 7 per cent and 41 per cent of certain cancer cases are attributed to being overweight or obese.
Doctors say if your child is obese, he is more likely to become an obese adult and is more susceptible to illnesses such as diabetes and cardiovascular issues.
GN Focus brings together a panel of UAE-based doctors to look into some of the consequences of childhood obesity.
The panel includes Dr Muhammad Hamed Farooqi, Director and Consultant Endocrinologist, Dubai Diabetes Centre, Dubai Health Authority; Dr Atul Aundhekar, Medical Advisor Beat Diabetes and Chief Medical Officer, iCare Clinics; and Dr Mukesh Batra, Founder and Chairman, Dr Batra’s Positive Health Clinic.
Also on this panel are Dr Abdul Rahman Alkrad, Specialist Orthopaedic Surgeon, Sharjah Corniche Hospital; Dr M. Aleem Mirza, Specialist Family Physician and Osteopath, Medical Director, Symbiosis Healthcare UK Group; Dr Malaz Yabroudi, Specialist Internal Medicine, Sharjah Corniche Hospital, Dr Salil Avinash Vengsarkar, Specialist General and Laparoscopic Surgeon, Head of Minimally Invasive Surgery, Lifeline Hospital, Jebel Ali and Dr David Robertson, Group Medical Director, Bourn Hall Dubai.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a condition where the blood sugar level in the body becomes higher than normal. It is either because the body fails to produce enough insulin to maintain a normal blood glucose level or cells simply do not respond to insulin, causing blood sugar levels to soar.
“Obese children are one of the fastest-growing sub groups for new onset of type 2 diabetes,” says Dr Farooqi.
Dr Aundhekar agrees. “Obese children with insulin resistance seem to register a faster progression to type 2 diabetes than adults. They are particularly vulnerable to type 2 diabetes in the second decade of their lives, when pubertal insulin resistance also happens due to physiological changes.”
Even modest weight loss can ease most problems.
“Restrict your child’s screen time. Research suggests that individuals who watched 21-40 hours of TV a week had more than twice the risk of developing diabetes than people who watched little or no TV,” says Dr Batra.
“Besides regular medication, a healthy diet followed by stress management, regular exercise and relaxation can help manage diabetes.”
High blood pressure
Although cardiovascular disease generally manifests in adulthood, severely obese children are at high risk of heart disease and stroke. Obesity increases the risk for childhood hypertension.
The combination of obesity and hypertension can lead to adverse cardiovascular outcomes.
Dr Yabroudi says fat tissues in the body need oxygen and nutrients in order to live, which requires blood vessels to work overtime to circulate more blood to these tissues. “
It increases the workload of the heart and puts more pressure on the artery walls, which results in higher blood pressure. In addition, extra weight can raise the heart rate and reduce the body’s ability to transport blood through the vessels,” he says.
Rise in cholesterol levels, especially low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, is another risk factor for cardiovascular disease as it reduces the level of good cholesterol. This results in the hardening of the heart arteries, increasing the chances for heart attacks.
Joint diseases
The extra weight in the body can cause wear and tear of the joints, increasing stress. This can speed up the breakdown of cartilage, leading to arthritis.
Osteoarthritis is a painful and disabling disease. New research shows that the obese are up to four times as likely to develop knee osteoarthritis as they are to develop high blood pressure or type 2 diabetes, points out Dr. Mirza.
Every kilogram of excess weight exerts about four times the extra pressure on the knees. That’s why people who are overweight are at a greater risk of developing arthritis, explains Dr Alkrad.
“Even losing just a small amount of weight through diet and exercise can improve joint health and function and reduce pain.”
Gallstone
Obesity is also a risk factor for gallstones. Dr Vengsarkar explains why both the overweight and obese are at increased risk of having gallbladder problems.
“Gallbladder helps store bile, a digestive juice produced by liver, which helps body absorb nutrients, he says.
“In obese people, liver tends to become overworked and it produces more bile. The bile in such people is like sludge than liquid. Eventually, this can lead to gallstone formation. Obese individuals have more than 50 per cent chance of developing gallstones.”
Sudden weight loss can also lead to gallstones as the gallbladder does not empty enough when the fat is cut back, warns Dr Vengsarkar.
“That’s why sometimes the gallbladder is removed while conducting a weight-loss surgery,” he says.
