Obesity is a rapidly growing public health problem worldwide. It is a cause of morbidity, disability and premature death. This is no longer limited to the developed nations, but developing nations are also struggling under this double burden of disease (The double burden of malnutrition is characterised by the coexistence of undernutrition along with overweight and obesity, or diet-related noncommunicable diseases -WHO | Double Burden of Malnutrition). World Obesity Day is globally observed on October 11th. It is organized by the World Obesity Federation with the aim to “promote practical solutions to end the global obesity crisis”.

The first World Obesity Day, was observed in 2015. The 2016 meet focussed on- Ending Childhood Obesity. This year, the theme is- “Treat obesity now and avoid the consequences later”. 

This focusses on 3 areas:
•    Investment in treatment services to support people affected by obesity, 
•    Intervention to improve the success of treatment, 
•    Prevention to reduce the need for treatment (1)

The World Obesity Policy and Prevention Committee works closely with the World Health Organization and various stakeholders to address this issue. Obesity needs to be tackled as a priority, since it is a primary risk factor for various Non- Communicable Diseases ranging from Cardiovascular Disease to Cancer and Diabetes. 

Earlier, we would not think of these diseases as affecting our younger population. However, with sedentary lifestyles, our young professionals and office goers are a group at risk. Long working hours, unhealthy eating habits and stress, all contribute to weight gain. The next group at risk is children, the prevalence of obesity in children in India is showing an increasing trend. The prevalence of being overweight increased from 9.7 per cent prior to 2001 to 13.9 per cent after 2010 (2). With undue pressure and focus on academics, physical fitness and exercise is often rated as useless and unnecessary. In schools, Physical Education classes lack organization and structure. Sometimes, toward higher standards, these classes are discontinued completely (the excuse given, is that children need to focus on and prepare for their board exams). This is disappointing considering the benefits exercise has on memory, concentration and cognitive ability.  How apt then, is the theme for this year to “Treat obesity now and avoid the consequences later”. This needs to start with the individual and within communities. We need a radical change to prevent and treat obesity now in our present generation of youth and young adults to prevent the consequences of an unhealthy, overweight older population in the years to come (later).

While people are becoming increasingly health conscious these days, a lot remains to be done. The worldobesity.org says that Non- Communicable Diseases affecting low and middle-income countries will increase disproportionately over the next 20 years. These health problems are not limited to a single individual but will have negative effects on economic growth and will cause a set back to the steps to reduce poverty.

It may seem like the magnitude of obesity is ever increasing, but what is encouraging to note is the focus and emphasis to protect and promote healthy diets to tackle this issue. These recommendations will help consumers make informed and healthier food choices. They have even touched on subtle aspects such as the impact of marketing of junk foods to children and have called for controls on advertising. 

The Key Articles are as follows:

Defining healthy diets and healthy foods:
•    Food and beverage dietary guidelines and classifications (Article 6)

Measures relating to the promotion and protection of healthy diets by addressing demand:
•    Education, skills, communication, and public awareness (Article 7)
•    Provision of nutrition information (Article 8)
•    Ensuring responsible food and beverage advertising, promotion and sponsorship (Article 9)
•    Controls on advertising, promotion and sponsorship to children (Article 10)
•    Interventions to influence positive consumption patterns (Article 11)
•    Economic, planning and licensing measures (Article 12)

Measures relating to the promotion and protection of healthy diets by addressing supply:
•    Improved nutritional quality of foods and reduced levels of potentially harmful nutrients (Article 13)
•    Nutritional standards for food services in schools, hospitals and public institutions (Article 14)

For more information on these Key Articles you can refer to the following link: Convention on Healhty Diets

On World Obesity Day, the message goes out to the Government, Stakeholders, Insurance providers and Policy Makers to invest in prevention of obesity. The World Obesity Policy and Prevention Committee has even rolled out a Healthy Venues initiative. This encourages corporate meetings and events to be organized with emphasis on healthy food choices (which is - reduce on saturated fat, salt and sugar) and activities that combat sitting- like standing ovations and exercise. These healthy changes will make a big difference to those attending conferences, business meetings and conventions around the world. 

These are interesting and out of the box ideas to combat this global epidemic. So, this World Obesity Day it is time for each of us to take a stand for our health. Aim to get physically fit, maintain a healthy body weight and eat healthy. These are steps towards a happy and healthy future!

You can read more articles on Weight Management by our In-house Dietitians HERE!

References:
1.    World Obesity Day. Retrieved 2017-07-28.
2.    Ranjani H, Mehreen TS, Pradeepa R, et al. Epidemiology of childhood overweight & obesity in India: A systematic review. The Indian Journal of Medical Research. 2016;143(2):160-174. doi:10.4103/0971-5916.180203

With inputs from:
1.    https://www.drugs.com/slideshow/tackling-obesity-now-1158
2.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Obesity_Day
3.    https://www.worldobesity.org/what-we-do/healthy-venues/
4.    https://www.worldobesity.org/what-we-do/policy-prevention/
5.    https://www.worldobesity.org/what-we-do/action-initiative/
6.    http://www.obesityday.worldobesity.org/
7.    https://www.worldobesity.org/what-we-do/aboutobesity/