HYDERABAD: Here is some food for thought for Hyderabadis. A shocking 48 per cent of the city’s adult population suffer from obesity and 8 per cent of the children too are obese, according to a study conducted by the National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad.In a sample survey of 3,102 adults under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits, scientists at NIN found that the prevalence of diabetes was around 16 per cent in the age group of 20 to 60 years. Breaking the notion that hypertension is a disease afflicting the old, the 36-60 years age group showed that nearly 55.8 per cent men and 49.3 per cent women suffer from the disease.“The incidence of these diseases has been on the rise and cases of schoolchildren suffering from hypertension and obesity have been reported. Nearly 4 per cent of these children have high blood pressure and 8 per cent are obese,” says Dr A Laxmaiah who conducted the anthropometric survey which took into account measurements of the body such as height, weight, body fat, waist and hip size among other factors. Couch potatoesThe increase in incidence of these non-communicable diseases, especially among school students, can be blamed on lack of physical activity and increased television viewing, according to the scientist. “Of all the households we surveyed in urban areas, nearly 97 per cent had television sets. Further, the children who were obese were all students of private schools and watched more than 3 hours of TV daily,” explains Dr A Laxmaiah.Lifestyle changes such as reduced physical activity and consumption of easily available ‘junk’ food have not spared those living in rural areas either. A separate study conducted for the rural population across 10 states indicated a sharp rise in the incidence of hypertension and insulin-tolerant diabetes.“Indians are at a high risk because nearly 50 per cent of the children are born under-nourished. The malnutrition in pre-school going age group makes them susceptible to cardiovascular diseases as adults,” says the scientist. This is a big challenge the country has to grapple with. “Providing sufficient nourishment to expectant mothers and young children on the one hand, the government has to implement the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke on a larger scale on the other,” observes the scientist.With the World Diabetes Day scheduled for November 14, this might be the right time to bring the much-needed dietary changes.
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