Introduction:
The World Obesity Federation has moved the date of World Obesity Day from October 11th to March 4th, 2020 to unify the celebration day globally, with the aim of providing opportunity and shedding light on the disease and its serious health consequences.
Obesity is a chronic disease affecting more than two billion people around the world and it increases the risk of several chronic diseases. Obesity is viewed as the most serious health problems worldwide and is stigmatized in much of the modern world. Through a social responsibility, radical solutions should be found including prevention, treatment and paying attention to a healthy lifestyle.
Facts:
- Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health.
- More than 1.9 billion adults are overweight, and over 650 million were obese in 2016.
- More than 42 million children under the age of 5 were overweight in 2013.
- Overweight and obesity kill more people than underweight.
- The fundamental cause of obesity is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended.
- Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s choices and protecting them from overweight and obese.
- Children's choices, diets, and physical activity habits are influenced by their surrounding environment.
- Obesity can be prevented by adopting a healthy diet.
- Regular physical activity helps you maintain a healthy weight.
- Reversing the global obesity epidemic requires a multisectoral and multidisciplinary population approach that considers prevailing cultural features.
Objectives:
- Raising health awareness of community members about the causes and risks of obesity and methods of prevention.
- Raising awareness about adopting a healthy lifestyle and encouraging early detection of obesity to reduce prevalence.
- Shedding light on the importance of taking preventive measures to combat obesity by urging all stakeholders to cooperate and contribute to finding solutions to eliminate obesity.
- Urging experts and businessmen to exert efforts and help consumers to change their unhealthy lifestyles.
Official Date:
Wednesday, March 4th, 2020 corresponding to Rajab 9th, 1441H.
World Day Theme:
References:
World Obesity Federation