Eight among Taiwan’s 10 most common causes of death in 2020 were related to obesity, while the obesity rate among Taiwanese adults has remained high over the past few years, reaching its highest at 47.9 percent from 2016 to 2019, the Health Promotion Administration has said.
The World Obesity Federation’s theme for this year’s World Obesity Day on Friday last week — “Everybody Needs to Act” — called for coordinated recognition and actions, the agency said.
WHO data in 2016 showed that 39 percent of adults worldwide were overweight and 13 percent were obese, the agency said, adding that the nation’s overweight rate exceeded the global average.
Photo: Chiu Chih-ju, Taipei Times
Taiwan Medical Association for the Study of Obesity chairman Lin Wen-yuan (林文元), a physician at China Medical University’s Department of Family Medicine in Taichung, said obesity is a chronic disease that causes declining physical health.
Obesity is related to eight among the nation’s 10 most common causes of death, Lin said.
The eight causes include cancer, heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, hypertensive disease, chronic lower respiratory disease, nephritis and kidney disease, and chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, he said.
Being obese increases the risk of severe illness from COVID-19, and it might triple the risk of hospitalization and double the risk of death due to the virus, he added.
Lin said obesity is also a risk factor for depression.
It is a complex and chronic disease with many causes, so people should not blame obese people for being lazy or say they lack determination, but rather offer them support to solve the problem, he said.
As the theme of World Obesity Day is “Everybody Needs to Act” this year, his organization urged people to follow three principles that can be subsumed as ACT, Lin said.
They are “accompanying” and having empathy for people who are overweight or obese, including supporting and assisting them when they are trying to lose weight, instead discriminating against them; reducing one’s “calorie” intake; and “training,” including improving one’s knowledge on healthy means of weight control, he said.
Taiwan Pediatric Association chairman Lee Hung-chang (李宏昌), a pediatrician at Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei, said that some parents might have the misconception that obesity in children is not a problem.
Obesity in children increases the risks of cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases when they get older, he said, adding that it can also cause negative effects on their social integration and learning.
He said keeping a balanced diet, exercising regularly and getting sufficient sleep are important to prevent obesity in children, he said.
Parents can limit the amount of food their obese child eats, accompany them while exercising, and make sure they get enough sleep for better growth and development, he said.
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