Labels warning consumers how unhealthy some packaged foods are may help curb the UAE’s obesity rate — which is double the global average, experts have suggested.
Officials gathered in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday, ahead of the Gulf Obesity Summit and Regional Congress 2018, and called for tighter regulations to combat the epidemic that affects 1.9 billion people worldwide.
Chief among the recommendations for the UAE was front-of-pack labelling, said Dr Doug Bettcher, head of non-communicable diseases at the Wold Health Organisation.
“Front-of-pack labelling comes in different forms but is a mechanism of clarifying with clear signs what is unhealthy and not healthy because the average consumer has a hard time understanding and differentiating between the quality of different foods,” he said.
Countries such as France, Chile and most recently the UK have adopted the method to deter people from purchasing food that is high in fat and sugar. The success of the tactic has yet to be measured.
“We don’t know yet the percentages of reduction of obesity but it helps consumers clarify more easily the types of food they are consuming — which foods are high in sugar, fat and salt,” said Dr Bettcher.
A tax on energy and sugary drinks introduced by the UAE in October was praised by the visiting experts but said more still needed to be done to address the country's obesity problem.
An ambitious target to halt the rise of obesity in children and adults by 2013 was set by WHO two years before but trends appear to have gone on in the opposite direction.
“We have been tracking global trends for obesity and overweight around the world and over the last four decades, we can see that the prevalence of obesity has almost tripled so rather than halting the rise, we have a massive problem on our hands,” said Leanne Riley from the WHO.
A vast proportion of adults around the world now who are either overweight or obese.
“A staggering 1.9 billion people around the world are either obese or overweight,” she said
Of those, 650 million adults are obese — around 13 per cent of all adults or more than 1 in 10 adults aged 18 or older.
She said the picture for children and adolescents was no better with 340 million children and adolescents between the age of five and 18 currently either overweight or obese. A further 41 million children under the age of five are overweight or obese.
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Read more:
Obesity rates in women among the UAE's greatest public health challenges, say doctors
UAE parents' view of obese children unrealistic, study shows
Special report: Obesity rate in the UAE double the world average
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Of the 340 million, 121 million of schoolchildren and adolescents are obese — meaning nearly 1 in 5 children and adolescents are either overweight or obese worldwide
The UAE fares even worse still with the prevalence of overweight or obesity roughly double the global average at 35 per cent. Roughly 1 in 3 children or adolescents in the UAE are either obese or overweight.
Two thirds of all adults in the UAE are obese or overweight, she said.
Between 200 and 300 bariatric surgeries are performed annually at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City with the youngest performed on a 14-year-old.
The surgeries are considered an option for individuals with excess weight ranging between 43 to 45 kgs.
Dr Abdelrahman Nimeri, Chief of the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City said that a study showed that the number of bariatric surgeries from 2014 to 2016 had increased from 4,000 to 6,000 surgeries.
“Obesity is becoming a real problem not just here in the UAE but worldwide and what we want is to start the dialogue and to change the way we think about obesity,” said Professor Ian Caterson, President of the World Obesity Federation.
“We want to change the stigma surrounding obesity in many parts of the world and we want to get obesity into the UN high level meetings.
“We want to get obesity into universal health care systems so it becomes an issue which we prevent, which we manage and which we care for people of all ages.
“The department of health is interested; world obesity is interested but we need to work together.”
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The major Hashd factions linked to Iran:
Badr Organisation: Seen as the most militarily capable faction in the Hashd. Iraqi Shiite exiles opposed to Saddam Hussein set up the group in Tehran in the early 1980s as the Badr Corps under the supervision of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The militia exalts Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but intermittently cooperated with the US military.
Saraya Al Salam (Peace Brigade): Comprised of former members of the officially defunct Mahdi Army, a militia that was commanded by Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and fought US and Iraqi government and other forces between 2004 and 2008. As part of a political overhaul aimed as casting Mr Al Sadr as a more nationalist and less sectarian figure, the cleric formed Saraya Al Salam in 2014. The group’s relations with Iran has been volatile.
Kataeb Hezbollah: The group, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, traces its origins to attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2004 and adopts a tough stance against Washington, calling the United States “the enemy of humanity”.
Asaeb Ahl Al Haq: An offshoot of the Mahdi Army active in Syria. Asaeb Ahl Al Haq’s leader Qais al Khazali was a student of Mr Al Moqtada’s late father Mohammed Sadeq Al Sadr, a prominent Shiite cleric who was killed during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba: Formed in 2013 to fight alongside Mr Al Assad’s loyalists in Syria before joining the Hashd. The group is seen as among the most ideological and sectarian-driven Hashd militias in Syria and is the major recruiter of foreign fighters to Syria.
Saraya Al Khorasani: The ICRG formed Saraya Al Khorasani in the mid-1990s and the group is seen as the most ideologically attached to Iran among Tehran’s satellites in Iraq.
(Source: The Wilson Centre, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation)
2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Floward%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERiyadh%2C%20Saudi%20Arabia%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbdulaziz%20Al%20Loughani%20and%20Mohamed%20Al%20Arifi%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EE-commerce%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbout%20%24200%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAljazira%20Capital%2C%20Rainwater%20Partners%2C%20STV%20and%20Impact46%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E1%2C200%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
How being social media savvy can improve your well being
Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.
As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.
Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.
Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.
Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.
However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.
“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.
People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.
Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
