Study highlights link between obesity and chronic diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa

8 January 2010 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: Africa is quickly joining the worldwide obesity epidemic as the prevalence of overweight and obesity in women living in Sub-Saharan Africa has increased by 35 percent since the early 1990s according to a recent BMC Public Health research study. Overweight and obesity is known to increase the risks of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and some forms of cancer; however, while people are becoming increasingly aware of these diseases, many remain ignorant of their connection to obesity. Abdhalah Ziraba, one of the authors who conducted the BMC Public Health study with the African Population and Health Research Center in Nairobi, told MediaGlobal, “Public awareness about the consequences of obesity is low and public health messages are also lacking, with focus being put on the more prominent diseases like HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.” Although the majority of overweight women are from higher socioeconomic brackets, the rate of obesity is increasing more rapidly among women in poor urban areas. The main cause of this increase seems to be greater access to cheap foods, which have high levels of sugar and saturated-fat contents. Another reason for the rise in obesity may be perceptions of beauty. According to Ziraba, some studies have shown a relation between obesity and perceived wealth, power, and health. The BMC Public Health study concludes that overweight and obesity in Africa should be prevented in its early stages by creating public awareness as envisioned in the World Health Organization Global strategy on diet, physical activity, and health. Sydney Oh