Dubai: Obesity’s close and dangerous relationship with diabetes was the focus on day two of the 2nd American Society for Nutrition Middle East Congress, which concludes on Friday.
A nationwide survey to establish the prevalence of obesity and diabetes is under proposal, said senior health officials.
The three-day congress shed light on ‘Diabesity’, a portmanteau word to describe the epidemic of diabetes and obesity occurring together.
In the UAE, the ‘Diabesity’ trend needs to be stopped, urged health officials. Available 2012 figures place the UAE seventh on the Global Fat Scale among 177 countries, calculated using UN data on population size and estimates of global weight from the World Health Organisation (Who). The WHO also estimates that about 20 per cent of the UAE adult population is overweight or obese.
Among Emirati and expatriate schoolchildren, the 2011 figures from the UAE Ministry of Health (MOH) suggest that 15.5 per cent are obese, 39.2 per cent are overweight and 21 per cent consume fast food three times or more a day.
Statistics by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) peg the percentage of diabetic UAE residents — Emiratis and expatriates, at more than 20 per cent with another 18 at high risk.
Speaking to Gulf News, Ayesha S. Al Dhaheri, Chair at the Department of Nutrition and Health at United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) and Head of WHO Collaborating Centre in Nutrition, said: “We are still working with old figures. We have proposed a nationwide survey along with the UAE Ministry of Health (MOH), United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) and the WHO to collect baseline data in areas like non-communicable diseases such as obesity and diabetes as well as risk factors like cholesterol and hypertension so we can tailor our programmes accordingly.”
Explaining the obesity-diabetes connection, Dr Lara Nasreddine, professor at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, and speaker, told Gulf News that the link between type 2 diabetes and obesity was well-established. “Without the intervention of a healthy diet and physical activity, obesity may develop, increasing chances of developing type 2 diabetes. According to the WHO, obesity is attributable to diabetes. In the Middle East, 72 per cent of Type 2 cases in women and 60 per cent in men are attributable to diabetes.”
The complications of ‘Diabesity’ are huge, she explained. With diabetes the micro risks include retinopathy (damage to the retina); nephropathy (kidney disease); and neuropathy (damage to nerves that could result in amputation). The macro risk includes coronary artery disease and stroke.
“Obesity puts people at a higher risk of a number of conditions including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, lipid disorders [high cholesterol or high triglycerides] and stroke,” she said.
To reduce the double burden of ‘Diabesity’, Dr Jean-Michel Borys from the Epode International Network, a body that implements sustainable strategies on Community Based Programmes (CBPs) to reduce childhood obesity, said, we need to prevent childhood obesity.
He told Gulf News: “We have to work with all stakeholders to create an environment that is conducive to healthy living whether through school canteens or urban planning.”
