IN South Africa obesity is ranked fifth as a risk factor for early death, above malnutrition and being underweight, yet it is still not managed as a chronic disease in this country.
According to the World Health Organisation, South Africa is one of the top three countries in Africa to be affected by this pandemic, only outranked by Libya and Egypt.
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To help combat this growing crisis global healthcare company, Novo Nordisk, plans to raise awareness of this disease.
During its media briefing on Friday, 5 February they said prescription medication may be able to help those who are struggling with being overweight.
They did however encourage patients to consult with their healthcare practitioners.
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Dr Sundeep Ruder, an endocrinologist who spoke at the briefing, stressed that obesity needs to be treated holistically and medically adding that it was a complex disease, unique to each person.
Ruder added that there was no simple solution to this health crisis which could be caused by anything from a genetic disposition to brain chemistry.
Of great concern to him is the severe affect Covid-19 is having on obese patients and how lockdown has affected some people’s ability to maintain weight control.
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Access to affordable, healthy food, space to exercise and quality medication is the three-pronged approach he recommends.
To break the stigma that overweight people are just lazy and can easily change lives by just eating less, the company has also launched a website: https://www.truthaboutweight.global/za/en.html to educate people about the facts of this chronic disease. It also advises on living with obesity.
WHO knows:
- Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.
- In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight. Of these over 600 million were obese.
- 41 million children under the age of 5 were overweight or obese in 2014.
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting
