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The UAE and the rest of the Gulf region are backing a new global effort to tackle the causes of obesity – and encourage people to choose a healthier lifestyle.
The network of patients, launched by the World Federation of Obesity, will increase awareness of the treatment options available to people struggling with a weight problem and will provide vital information on how to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
The online portal will provide essential tips at the click of a mouse and ensure that obese people do not suffer in silence.
The new resource was supported by health professionals from the Gulf and Lebanon.
Dr. Nasreen Alfaris, an endocrinologist and specialist in obesity medicine in Saudi Arabia and co-chair of the Global Network Steering Committee for Obesity in the Gulf and Lebanon, said that obesity was the most One of the main challenges of the region.
"In some countries in our region, one-third of our population lives with obesity, and this initiative will help them make informed choices about healthier lifestyles and different treatment options available," he said. Dr. Alfaris.
"Obesity is a complex disease that stems from a multitude of factors, including our living environment, our cultural traditions and our genetics. It is also one of the major health and lifestyle challenges facing our region.
"The patient network is an opportunity for people to share their own experiences and, in so doing, help other people with obesity manage their weight loss and lead a healthy lifestyle." and active. "
Lucy Keightley, director of communications and partnerships at the World Obesity Federation, said the network is an online center in which people with obesity can share their stories in order to help others.
"If you live with obesity and want a source of factual information, join the patient network, a source of facts and information about obesity.
"The Patient Network is an online center for people to connect to other people's stories and experiences, we are looking for people with obesity to share their stories, and sharing your personal experience, more people with obesity will have access to information and support to enable them to lead healthy, active lives. "
The organization worked in tandem with a steering group made up of renowned clinicians from the region, leveraging their experiences to develop and deploy the initiative.
The steering committee of the Gulf and Lebanon met in Muscat earlier this year and will continue to provide expert advice to the network.
It is hoped that the new website will encourage obese people to explain their illness, helping to reverse the alarming trend of ignoring problems that can affect their health in the short and long term.
Levels of obesity have been of concern to health experts in the UAE for many years.
Health authorities estimate that about 40% of the UAE's child population is overweight or obese, this trend eventually leading to serious health problems.
The results of the five-year national health survey, announced by the Ministry of Health and Prevention in March, revealed that 27.8% of the 9,400 Emiratis and residents surveyed were obese.
At the European Congress on Obesity, held in Glasgow, Scotland, in April, a Dubai doctor said that many obese people in the UAE were hesitant to ask for help from 39, a professional because of the stigma surrounding their condition.
Dr. Rita Nawar, an endocrinologist who has been working in the United Arab Emirates for 12 years, said that a delay in obtaining medical support meant that overweight residents were at risk of suffering from pain and suffering. a faster onset of diseases and related conditions such as diabetes.
She said that obesity was on the national agenda and that awareness was increasing, but she called for more education of professionals, health authorities and the public.
"A person suffering from obesity – especially women from the UAE culture – can treat obesity itself, but without saying aloud that she is doing so," said Dr. Nawar. The National at the top of obesity.
"This causes a delay in the search for good professional help and increases the burden of obesity on health.
"Often, I see a patient who comes to manage his weight only, but when we do tests, he is already diabetic."
There is "a bit more awareness" of obesity in the UAE, but "stigma is still there and it takes a lot of work to change it," she said.
For more information, visit www.worldobesity.org/patient-portal
Updated: June 9, 2019 11h20
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