ISLAMABAD: One-third of adults in Pakistan are overweight or obese, and the gender gap in excess weight is widening, with more women gaining weight than men, according to a new first-of-its-kind analysis of trend data from 188 countries published in The Lancet.
“These global findings underscore the double burden of malnutrition in Pakistan with high rates of under-nutrition among children, and adolescents/young women and rising rates of obesity among adults. Some of these issues may be related to rapid health transitions with changes in lifestyle, dietary patterns and limited physical activity,” Dr Zulfiqar Bhutta, one of the study’s co-authors, said.
Dr Bhutta is also the founding director of the Centre for Excellence in Women and Child Health at the Aga Khan University.
The study conducted by an international consortium of researchers led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington shows that rates of adult overweight and obesity have grown globally from 30 per cent in 1980 to 37 per cent in 2013.
“Pakistan has seen rates increase from 26 percent to 33 percent over the same period. In 1980, 24 percent of men and 29 percent of women were overweight or obese, a five percentage point difference, but, in 2013, the rates were 28 percent for men and 38 percent for women.
Internews
