I am a 28 year old girl and have been overweight for a long time. I manage to lose weight, but i put on double the weight very quickly. Could you tell me what diet and exercise regime I should follow to lose weight and keep it that way? 

I think what happens is that you go on crash diets to lose weight and the moment you stop you start to gain weight again. It’s a common phenomenon. What you need to understand that you need to eat and exercise properly for long-term weight loss. This won’t happen instantly and it will take time but all good things take time. Basically to lose weight you need to burn more calories in a day than you take in. If you eat a well-balanced diet and exercise regularly you will lose weight. Read this article to understand the importance of a wholesome diet. For diet and exercise ideas you can check out the various articles in the weight loss section.

I need to gain weight. My height is 5’11”and my weight is 60 kg. Can you please suggest what I should do? 

Some people find it hard to gain weight. This can be for various reasons, the most common being that they have a very fast metabolism which burns up calories quickly. To gain weight you need a proper diet combined with a good regime which combines weight training and cardio. To put on muscle weight you need a lot of proteins in your diet. You should ideally consult a nutritionist. Read this article for more tips.
 I want to lose weight but I don’t like gymming. I have heard that yoga can help you lose weight. What other techniques are there to lose weight without going to the gym?

 Going to the gym to lose weight is not necessary. As you mentioned you could try out Yoga, Walking, Swimming, playing some sports like badminton, tennis etc. Even at home exercise videos are helpful. Another important aspect of weight loss is to control your diet. Eating the right kind of foods will definitely help you lose weight. For more exercise ideas you can check out these articles: 

• Walking for weight loss
• Fun ways to lose weight
• Power yoga
• Zumba
• Pilates

 Does obesity have any specific risks for women between 20 and 40?

Obesity in young women has an impact on their psychological and social health and also on their reproductive health. Obesity is frequently associated with disturbances in the menstrual cycle. It affects fertility and also inflicts a number of serious risks during pregnancy such as diabetes and hypertension. Obese pregnant ladies have been linked with higher rates of caesarean section. Obese women in their 20s have increased risk of low back pain onset within 10 years.

Hi. I am a 30-year old lady. I work-out every day. However, I only do cardio and avoid weights. I have heard that women should avoid weight training as it could cause too much muscle gain. I have seen female bodybuilders who look as muscular as men and it makes me scared to take up weights. Is weight training bad for women?

Women should definitely not avoid weight training. It’s one of the biggest misconceptions out there. Its benefits are immense. It can keep osteoporosis away, improve flexibility, posture, strength, endurance and also improves cardiovascular health. And women who are scared that they will start looking like muscular caveman can rest assured that will never happen. Muscle hypertrophy, the kind we see on male bodybuilders is usually fuelled by testosterone. A woman’s body on the other hand secretes only about 1/100th of the amount of this hormone and unless a woman takes steroids, it’s impossible for her to look that bulky! Read more about benefits of weight training for women.

If you’ve any queries, you can ask them on our Q&A section. 

It isn’t a shortcut to weight loss

People who believe that it is a short cut for weight loss are generally not the ones who need it. This is for people who have honestly tried to lose weight and tried various gyms, diets, have gone and have lost weight which keeps coming back.

Typically, bariatric surgery is advised for those patients who are at least 25 to 30 kilos overweight with BMI 32.5 or above. People with severe diabetes, hypertension or obstructive sleep apnoea associated with obesity are also likely candidates. Women who have irregular periods and are unable to conceive due to obesity can also opt for the surgery.

Bariatric surgery can be performed on all kinds of patients except if they have an unstable heart condition or untreated angina, or are psychologically unstable in which case they don’t understand/appreciate what is required after bariatric surgery and will not follow-up.

Role in treatment of Diabetes

Bariatric surgery plays an important role in treatment of Type 2 diabetes by changing the hormonal levels in the blood. The insulin that is produced in the body becomes sufficient.

Insulin resistance is increased and blood sugar is controlled. Over 80 % of the patients after the surgery will have normal blood sugar without medicines which is very significant because worldwide 60% of patients have uncontrolled blood sugar levels even with medicines.

Choosing a good surgeon is important

No surgery is a minor surgery. Hence before choosing a surgeon it is important to know if the surgeon can offer the entire range of surgeries. If a surgeon knows only one procedure, he will offer only that procedure which may or may not be suitable for you. Look for a surgeon who is a dedicated bariatric surgeon and has performed over 100 bariatric surgeries a year. The more experience a surgeon has in bariatric surgery, the less chances of complication rates. A dedicated bariatric surgeon will have time to spend with the patients after the surgery and will see you two to three times in the first year after surgery and once every year thereafter. Also make sure that the surgeon has a team of support staff with him – a dietician, a physician, a psychologist and counsellors. In case of any doubt talk to your other patients the surgeon has operated on and ask them about their personal experience.

Liposuction and Tummy Tucks are cosmetic procedures

They are done in a person whose weight is normal or near normal but has excess fat in particular parts of the body. Liposuction removes excess fat from thighs, back etc. Tummy tuck is done in the lower part of abdomen. The part of the abdomen that is in excess is tucked or removed and the skin is tightened so that you get a flat tummy. Other bariatric procedures are Sleeve Gastrectomy, Gastric Banding and Gastric Bypass.

Care before and after surgery

Many instructions are given before surgery to ensure that the procedure is safe for the patient. Tests to evaluate fitness before surgery which include heart, lung and kidney check-up, liver function, cholesterol, etc. are conducted. If any correctable problem or deficiency is diagnosed in these tests, then it should be attended to. Most of the people who are overweight by 25 to 30 kg also have a fatty liver. Such patients are put on a diet for one to two weeks before surgery primarily to reduce the fat content of the liver and not for weight loss. Patients are also taught breathing exercises.

After the surgery, patients are discharged either the same day or after 24 hrs. They should be on a liquid diet for about two weeks to ensure healing after which they are advised to be on a soft diet for a while. They are also prescribed supplements of protein, vitamin, calcium and iron to compensate for the deficiency of nutrients during the healing period.

Cost factor

The cost of surgery depends on where it is done and which procedure is being done. On an average the cost of bariatric surgery would be between two to three and a half lakh Indian rupees. At the moment it is not covered by insurance in India. Hence, majority of the patients pay from their pockets.

Lifestyle changes and weight loss after surgery

Bariatric surgery is just a tool. Making the right lifestyle changes is the most important decision that the patient needs to make. If patients eat good quality food and are physically active, they can lose anywhere between 70 to 95% of their extra weight. For e.g. if a person weighs 120 kg as against the ideal weight of 60 kg, he/she can expect to lose around 45 to 55 kg. The younger the patient, the better the weight loss is because young patients are more physically active.

Making the right food choices is paramount post-surgery. Since the quantity of food taken will be small, they need to eat protein-rich foods like pulses, milk products, eggs, fish, chicken, etc. Also, patients need to exercise, especially train with weights on a regular basis.

In some patients who have lost adequate weight after bariatric surgery the excess skin surrounding their pre-op fat becomes loose. This can be avoided by having enough proteins, water, vitamins, by exercising regularly and by getting body massages. After bariatric surgery less than 1% of the patients need plastic surgeries like tummy tuck or thigh lift.

Risks involved

The risk with bariatric surgery is primarily the same as with any other surgery. The risk is associated with anaesthesia, how the surgery is done and how the follow-up is done over a period of time. After the surgery, the risk is only of nutritional deficiency which can be completely avoided with patient compliance and regular follow-ups.

It is a misconception that the surgery restricts the absorption of nutrients causing malnutrition. Most of the bariatric surgeries work on the principle of reducing the portion size and not on malabsorption. There are very few procedures which work on principle of malabsorption and are not done in countries where there are more vegetarians. It is possible that some patients may have malnutrition which can be completely prevented by following post-operative guidelines and having more proteins, vitamins, calcium and iron in their diet.

‘The study is novel because for the first time we are showing that increase in Body Mass Index (BMI) is not happening equally across the board,’ S. V. Subramanian, professor of Population Health and Geography at the Harvard School of Public Health, told IANS.  ‘Obese and overweight people are gaining weight rapidly in low-and middle-income countries, including India, while those who are severely undernourished are not experiencing similar weight gains,’ said Subramanian, the senior author of the study.

‘Increases in average BMI are largely driven by populations that are already overweight or obese, with little to no change among underweight individuals,’ he said. The study shows a persistent problem of underweight in India, with about 25 percent of the population being underweight in 2005, and at the same time the percentage of women who are obese has doubled.

‘To put this in perspective, the number of underweight women exceeds the number of overweight and obese combined in India. This pattern of persisting problems of under-nutrition along with a simultaneous rise in obesity is being seen in most of the low income countries studied,’ Fahad Razak, the study’s lead author and a fellow at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital, told IANS.
Razak says underweight people die at much higher rates, perhaps because of diseases related to being malnourished, while overweight and obese people also have higher rates of death and disease, mostly from causes such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. ‘We believe that as India increases its focus on the health needs of overweight and obese people it must continue to address the needs of the large number of severely undernourished people in society,’ says Razak.

The study used information collected in Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) of Indian women with a sample size of 72,469 in 1998 and 91,243 in 2005. ‘One might think that as a country grows economically, the majority of the underweight population would move into the average BMI range, but our study shows the opposite and the people of average weight are disappearing in India,’ says Razak.

‘This growing trend of body weight extremes is going to pose a major challenge for health care and policy leaders,’ says Razak. ‘They will need to balance their priorities between addressing health issues afflicting the underweight who happen to be poor, and health issues afflicting the obese and overweight – the upper middle-class and rich.’

BMI is an indicator of body fat calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by their height in metres squared. Obesity is defined as having a BMI of more than 30.0 kg/m. Compared to people with a healthy weight (a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 kg/m2), obese individuals and overweight individuals (who have a BMI between 25.0 and 29.9 kg/m2) have an increased risk of diabetes, heart disease and stroke, and tend to die younger. At the same time, people who are underweight (BMI less than 18.5) also have an increased risk of death, perhaps from complications related to being malnourished.

Source: IANS

The buddy system

Know a friend who’s also trying to shed kilos? Make a pact and promise each other that you’ll exercise together – even if you don’t live in the same city. Join a yoga class, dance class or just go for a brisk walk every day, whatever floats your boat. Check up on each other’s progress daily; it’s not just the moral support that we need but the thought that someone is trying just as hard as you that can really help you keep your routine intact.

The carrot and stick approach

Ok, so this probably isn’t as cruel as it sounds. It’s quite simple really – an incentive always pushes you to do better. Promise yourself that if you lose 2 kilos in the next one week, you can buy yourself a lipstick or whatever it is that you like. The corollary should work too – unless you lose those 2 kilos, you will not shop for anything, no matter how cheap or small. Shopping is just one carrot; yours could be dining out or a new haircut.

Keep short goals

If someone told you to lose 10 kilos in a month, chances are you’ll quit in a week thanks to the mammoth goal but who said big numbers are the best ones? While it’s good to be ambitious, for starters keep your goals achievable – that way the regime won’t sound so daunting. Think about it – losing 1 kilo in a week sounds good too, doesn’t it?

Give yourself variety

Just because you chose to walk every day for an hour doesn’t mean you have to do it every day. For one, it will turn into a monotonous routine that you’ll itch to skip. So do different things – dance, skip, cycle or swim. And if you are a bit more adventurous, you could try jogging backwards. Just a thought! Dancing is probably one of the best ways to get you moving but you don’t have to join a dance class for that. Just create your own playlist, lock yourself in a room, plug in those earphones and get grooving!

Indulge once in a while

Losing flab means keeping the most tempting things at bay – cheese, chocolates, sweetmeats, fried food – and this is hard work. But if you’ve stuck to your eating habits you can indulge yourself once in a while – that means once in two weeks! This is harder than it sounds because the minute that piece of cake comes in front of you, you’ll begin to justify to yourself why it’s ok to have it. ‘So, I will have two now and none the next week.’ But it doesn’t work that way.

Compensate

Again, this doesn’t mean you pig out on desserts one day and starve yourself the next day. It doesn’t even work. What it means is that if you happened to have a heavier lunch than you intended to, go easy on the dinner.

Sworn enemies of a weight loss plan

So you’re out drinking with friends and even though it may be impossible to avoid one drink, stay away from the French fries! When you go to the movies, not having popcorn and cold drinks is almost criminal for some – so popcorn might be ok, but cold drinks are an absolute no-no. Have water or juice instead. When you are out for a dinner, avoid the dessert unless it’s a fruit salad! These are very frequent situations we find ourselves in and so keeping clear of cold drinks, dessert and deep fried appetizers is absolutely important. If you are one of those who stock cold drinks at home, time to put an end to that as well.

Stop one at a time

Don’t try to go gung-ho on your diet plan and quit everything at once. You can start with something you eat fairly regularly but which is fattening too – for instance fried papad at home with meals. Try roasted instead. You might also be eating cheese in your grilled sandwich – time to cut that out next. Slather your rotis ghee or butter, maybe? Chop that off your list too. Cut down on one thing at a time – it’s easier than stopping everything at once.

Declare

It may sound ridiculous but when you declare your goals, the pressure is that much more on you to achieve those goals – it’s a trick many people use to stick to their plans of action and you could try the same. You don’t have to put it on Facebook but maybe tell a friend. Let them know that you binged or you strayed off – it’ll help you be true to yourself and help you get back on track.

Take inspiration

We all have that one person, that one celebrity that we wish we could look like and even more so who went from overweight to fit. Read up about them and find out their fitness secret. You don’t have to ape their routine – the idea is to take inspiration. Every time you feel like you are close to quitting, sit back and think of your inspiration; after all it wasn’t easy for them so it won’t be for you either. Having someone to look up to makes it easier to stick to your fitness regime.

Making charts and giving yourself constant encouragement is all good but remember not to justify binging or making lame excuses for when you stray off your plan. If you do, don’t quit – get back to it. Adhering to a weight loss plan is easier said than done but hey, if losing weight was that simple, everyone would be skinny right? The trick - Keep going and don’t let bumps in the way stop you.”

Here are ten tips to keep your inner glutton at bay:

1. Never attend a party on an empty stomach. Just before you leave your house, bite into a juicy apple or have a bowl of oats. These should keep you going for at least 3-4 hours.
2. Attending the party with a friend/relative? Take them into confidence; share your weight loss goal. Ask them to keep a watch on you and give you timely reminders not to binge.
3. If you are someone who likes their starters, stick to it. Make it your main course.
4. If it’s a buffet before you stand in the queue ask for the menu and plan what to eat. This will stop you from tasting everything.
5. Ditch the huge plates; opt for the dessert plate instead. Serve yourself only small servings of things you’ve decided to eat.
6. Once you’ve picked what you wanted, pick a corner and eat in peace. Pay attention to what you eat. If people persist you socialize let them know you’ll join them in a bit.
7. Eat with proper etiquette. If the occasion dictates, use a fork and knife. It’s harder to be glutton if you eat like a normal human being.
8. Just because there is free alcohol doesn’t mean you drink till you drop. Drink judiciously. You don’t want to make a fool of yourself. Have a glass of water between drinks.
9. Take small portions for dessert. Even if it’s ice-cream remember those calories count.
10. Remember just because the host urges you to eat doesn’t mean you have to.  Learn to say no politely but firmly.

 Just follow these ten party commandments and your waistline will have everyone green with envy. It’s party time!

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Before entering politics, ‘netaji’ or leader, as Mulayam Singh is called by his supporters, was himself famous as a ‘pehelwan’ or body builder. In September, the younger Yadav was featured in an internationally acclaimed body building website as ‘the international transformation of the month’.

The transformation in Prateek left many stunned. His weight dropped from 103-plus kg to 67 kg over the past few years; he has also added rippling muscles to his 5 feet 11 inch frame. The transition, Prateek told IANS, happened as a result of a pep talk he received from Mulayam Singh over a decade ago.

‘I was back from my school in Dehradun with pneumonia. In the course of treatment, steroids were administered, and it led to major weight gain. By the time I turned 11 years old, I weighed 103 kg.’ Netaji asked him to shed weight and told him that if he lost 10 kg, he would fetch himself a reward. ‘He would chide me and tell me not to gorge on mangoes, and tell me to drink my milk plain, without Bournvita, as weight was becoming such a big concern,’ Prateek says.

Prateek also decided to join a local gymnasium and compete with two other friends in a weight loss race.All these efforts began to pay off. In time, he stood on the weighing scales and found himself 15 kg lighter. Ever since, Prateek says, he has maintained a steady diet-and-exercise regimen.

It helps that he is married to his only love, Aparna, who too joins him in his 45-minute ‘intense work out.’ ‘Now,’ an excited Prateek says, ‘There are old friends who think I am my own younger brother!’

There are people who wonder how he has managed to retain the bodybuilder’s structure over so long. ‘It’s become a habit now, I don’t even have to try,’ Prateek says, giving one an insight into his diet and lifestyle. There are multi-grain ‘rotis’ and olive oil, and a protein shake. And all the food he eats is measured. His family now knows just what and how much he will eat.

Wife Aparna points out that her husband is a vegetarian, ‘Prateek is a complete vegetarian, a needle-free bodybuilder,’ she says, with evident pride. Prateek explains that he has never had steroids for muscle gain; and he says he is proud to demolish the myth that only non-vegetarians can have rippling muscles.

‘I eat a lot of vegetables and fruits. I am vegetarian, and my body is here for all to see!’ And how does his father react to Prateek’s bodybuilding feat? ‘Obviously, he is elated. He is a busy man, and we only get to meet late at night. He then has time to share some time-tested bodybuilding techniques,’ Prateek says.

‘Papa has his own way of explaining fitness: a man’s chest should be the thing thrust out, not his belly, he says. And one should never entirely satisfy one’s hunger, one should eat just a wee bit less. Those are his tips,’ says Prateek. With 18.25 biceps to show, Prateek now has a new mission: he would like to propagate the vegetarian-as-bodybuilder notion and see more bodybuilders go veggie.

And how does he feel to be so apolitical in a family of leading politicians?

Politics only interested him ever when he was eight years old, Prateek says.‘I would see my father on TV, and then try to imitate him: ‘Brothers and sisters, I am now just a young boy…’ my speech would go, the young man says, chuckling. And what does he have to say about his father Mulayam Singh Yadav and brother Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav?‘Netaji has a great memory, he remembers everyone,’ says Prateek. ‘Akhilesh bhaiyya has a vision, he wants much changed,’ he says.

A beautiful body, and politically correct: that’s Prateek.

“Obesity could also affect the mind, and cause symptoms like insomnia, depression and self-pity,” Shankar said, citing responses of obese women during the survey. A majority of the women working in the information technology (IT) and biotechnology (BT) sectors gain weight as they spend 10-12 hours sitting at their terminals (computers) in a controlled environment.

“Most of the ‘knowledge workers’ admitted during the survey that their walks were confined to going to a restroom or fetching coffee, tea or snacks from the office pantry or cafeteria. Their work poses a hazard to their health,” Shankar said.  Although many of the fat women expressed satisfaction over their careers and salaries, they were conscious of their appearance.  ”Grappling with weight management could pose psychological problems and affect not only eating habits but also lead to depression. Long-term stress influences hormones, which control appetite and stimulate metabolism, resulting in insulin release and hunger for more food,” chief psychiatrist Neelesh Tiwari of the New Delhi-based World Brain Centre said.

“Married working women who are also homemakers are under even greater stress as they have no time to include exercise in their daily routine. Their own health is unfortunately not a priority for these women,” Shankar said.  Interestingly, unlike their men counterparts, women knowledge workers, single or married, do not make use of the gym or other health facilities that many tech firms provide in their campuses for paucity of time, deadline pressures at work, and the rush to return home to finish domestic chores.

According to chief executive Amit Srivastava of Rapid Nutrition, an Australia-based firm that offers comprehensive weight loss programmes, middle-aged working women are prone to debilitating disorders as the weight loss patterns are not sustainable in the long run unless they give up sedentary lifestyle, resort to walks and exercise for at least 30 minutes daily and change their food habits, especially eating junk food. ”A multi-pronged approach to increase basal metabolic rate, resist hunger and produce calorie deficit with essential micro-nutrients can help reduce weight and regain a body that is slim, light and active,” claimed Simon St Ledger, managing director, Rapid Nutrition.

Up to half of all food eaten is burned up in physical activity. Increasing mass means higher energy requirements, because it takes more energy to move a heavy body.  Even at rest a bigger body burns more energy. Using data from the United Nations and World Health Organization, researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine estimated that the adult human population weighs in at 287 million tonnes. Out of this total 15 million tonnes is the extra weight of overweight people whereas 3.5 million is the obese.

While the average body mass globally was 62kg, North America, which has the highest body mass of any continent, with an average body mass of 80.7kg. North America has only 6% of the world’s population but 34% of the world’s biomass mass due to obesity. In contrast Asia has 61% of the world’s population but only 13% of the world’s biomass due to obesity.

If all countries had the same average BMI as the USA the total human biomass would increase by 58 million tonnes – this is the equivalent of an additional 935 million people of world average body mass.  Explaining the implications of this study Sarah Walpole said, “Our results emphasize the importance of looking at biomass rather than just population numbers when considering the ecological impact of a species, especially humans.”

This study was based on the 2005 WHO SURF report so it is an underestimate of the current situation. The world’s population is continuing to increase in size – the UN predicts that by 2050 there could be 8.9 billion people on the planet.

Prof Ian Roberts, continued, “Everyone accepts that population growth threatens global environmental sustainability – our study shows that population fatness is also a major threat. Unless we tackle both population and fatness – our chances are slim.”

Content Source: Bio-Med Central

What are overweight and obesity?

Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health.

Body mass index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify overweight and obesity in adults. It is defined as a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/m²).

The WHO definition is:

• a BMI greater than or equal to 25 is overweight
• a BMI greater than or equal to 30 is obesity.

BMI provides the most useful population-level measure of overweight and obesity as it is the same for both sexes and for all ages of adults. However, it should be considered a rough guide because it may not correspond to the same degree of fatness in different individuals.

Facts about overweight and obesity

Overweight and obesity are the fifth leading risk for global deaths. At least 2.8 million adults die each year as a result of being overweight or obese. In addition, 44% of the diabetes burden, 23% of the ischaemic heart disease burden and between 7% and 41% of certain cancer burdens are attributable to overweight and obesity.

Some WHO global estimates from 2008 follow.

• More than 1.4 billion adults, 20 and older, were overweight.
• Of these overweight adults, over 200 million men and nearly 300 million women were obese.
• Overall, more than one in ten of the world’s adult population was obese.

In 2010, more than 40 million children under five were overweight. Once considered a high-income country problem, overweight and obesity are now on the rise in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in urban settings. Close to 35 million overweight children are living in developing countries and 8 million in developed countries.

Overweight and obesity are linked to more deaths worldwide than underweight. For example, 65% of the world’s population live in countries where overweight and obesity kill more people than underweight (this includes all high-income and most middle-income countries).

What causes obesity and overweight?

The fundamental cause of obesity and overweight is an energy imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended. Globally, there has been:

• an increased intake of energy-dense foods that are high in fat, salt and sugars but low in vitamins, minerals and other micronutrients; and
• a decrease in physical activity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of many forms of work, changing modes of transportation, and increasing urbanization.

Changes in dietary and physical activity patterns are often the result of environmental and societal changes associated with development and lack of supportive policies in sectors such as health, agriculture, transport, urban planning, environment, food processing, distribution, marketing and education.

What are common health consequences of overweight and obesity?

Raised BMI is a major risk factor for noncommunicable diseases such as:

• cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke), which were the leading cause of death in 2008;
• diabetes;
• musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis – a highly disabling degenerative disease of the joints);
• some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon).

The risk for these noncommunicable diseases increases, with the increase in BMI.

Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of obesity, premature death and disability in adulthood. But in addition to increased future risks, obese children experience breathing difficulties, increased risk of fractures, hypertension, early markers of cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance and psychological effects.

Facing a double burden of disease

Many low- and middle-income countries are now facing a “double burden” of disease.

• While they continue to deal with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, they are experiencing a rapid upsurge in noncommunicable disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in urban settings.
• It is not uncommon to find under-nutrition and obesity existing side-by-side within the same country, the same community and the same household.

Children in low- and middle-income countries are more vulnerable to inadequate pre-natal, infant and young child nutrition At the same time, they are exposed to high-fat, high-sugar, high-salt, energy-dense, micronutrient-poor foods, which tend to be lower in cost. These dietary patterns in conjunction with low levels of physical activity, result in sharp increases in childhood obesity while undernutrition issues remain unsolved.

How can overweight and obesity be reduced?

Overweight and obesity, as well as their related noncommunicable diseases, are largely preventable. Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s choices, making the healthier choice of foods and regular physical activity the easiest choice, and therefore preventing obesity.

At the individual level, people can:

• limit energy intake from total fats;
• increase consumption of fruit and vegetables, as well as legumes, whole grains and nuts;
• limit the intake of sugars;
• engage in regular physical activity;
• achieve energy balance and a healthy weight.

Individual responsibility can only have its full effect where people have access to a healthy lifestyle. Therefore, at the societal level it is important to:

• support individuals in following the recommendations above, through sustained political commitment and the collaboration of many public and private stakeholders;
• make regular physical activity and healthier dietary patterns affordable and easily accessible too all – especially the poorest individuals.

The food industry can play a significant role in promoting healthy diets by:

• reducing the fat, sugar and salt content of processed foods;
• ensuring that healthy and nutritious choices are available and affordable to all consumers;
• practicing responsible marketing;
• ensuring the availability of healthy food choices and supporting regular physical activity practice in the workplace.

WHO response

Adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2004, the WHO Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health describes the actions needed to support healthy diets and regular physical activity. The Strategy calls upon all stakeholders to take action at global, regional and local levels to improve diets and physical activity patterns at the population level.

WHO has developed the 2008-2013 Action plan for the global strategy for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases to help the millions who are already affected cope with these lifelong illnesses and prevent secondary complications. This action plan aims to build on, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and the WHO Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health. The action plan provides a roadmap to establish and strengthen initiatives for the surveillance, prevention and management of NCDs.

Source: WHO

“It concerns an increasing discrepancy between the daily timing of the physiological clock and the social clock. As a result of this social jetlag, people are chronically sleep-deprived,” the journal Current Biology reported. ”They are also more likely to smoke and drink more alcohol and caffeine. Now, we show that social jetlag also contributes to obesity; the plot that social jetlag is really bad for our health is thickening,” added Roenneberg, according to a university statement.

Each of us has a biological clock, he explained. We can’t set those clocks according to our whims like watches. They are rather entrained by daylight and night-darkness to provide the optimal window for sleep and waking. In modern society, we listen to those clocks “less and less due to the increasing discrepancy between what the body clock tells us and what the boss tells us.”

Roenneberg’s team is compiling a vast Utabase on human sleeping and waking behaviour, which they’ll eventually use to produce a world sleep map. Now 10 years into the effort, they already have lots of information, including participants’ height, weight, and sleep patterns.

Their analysis shows that people with more severe social jetlag are also more likely to be overweight. In other words, it appears that living “against the clock” may be a factor contributing to the epidemic of obesity, the researchers say.

“Waking up with an alarm clock is a relatively new facet of our lives,” Roenneberg says. “It simply means that we haven’t slept enough and this is the reason why we are chronically tired. Good sleep and enough sleep is not a waste of time but a guarantee for better work performance and more fun with friends and family during off-work times. And slimmer waistlines, too,” he added.

Source: IANS