Health Days 2015

World Anti-Obesity Day
Obesity is not a healthy condition spreading in a region, a country or a particular community, as the increase in the number of those people suffering from obesity and eating disorders may be attributed to changes in lifestyle, including reliance on fast food and lack of physical activity. The only method to combat this risk is to adopt a healthy diet and physical activity.
 
A study showed that prevalence of obesity (according to the Body Mass Index (BMI) of > 30 km\m2) amounted to 28.7%, with a higher rate among females (33.5% vs. 24.1%). Based on the same survey, obesity rates increases with aging, and this percentage reached the highest in the age group of 55-64 years (at a rate of up to 48%). The study indicated that morbid obesity rates (BMI of > 40 km\m2) amounted to 2.5% among males compared to 4.7 among females. 
 
Key Facts:
  • Worldwide obesity has more than doubled between 1980 and 2014.
  • In 2014, more than 1.9 billion persons were overweight, over 600 million of which were obese.
  • 42 million children under the age of 5 were obese in 2013.
  • Most of the world's population lives in countries, where overweight or obesity kills more people than underweight.
  • Obesity is treatable and preventable.
  • The World Anti-Obesity Day aims at raising awareness and educating the community about obesity harms and complications, including:
    • Cardiovascular diseases (heart attacks and strokes in the first place) which was the main cause of death in 2012.
    • Diabetes.
    • Musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis, a degenerative disease that affects the joints and causes the disability to a large extent).
    • Some cancers (endometrial cancer, breast cancer, and colon cancer).
 
Official Date:
Globally      : November 26th, 2105
Locally        : Safar 14th, 1437H
 
Theme of the World Anti-Obesity Day:
 
 
Targeted Group:
  • The Obese.
  • People vulnerable to obesity.
  • Medical professionals (physicians, nurses, nutritionists and pharmacists).
    The public.

Related link:

For more information.

 

Last Update : 19 January 2016 03:04 PM
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