Childhood obesity is rising rapidly in Asia-Pacific and it costs the region US$166 billion a year
Overweight children are at higher risk of becoming obese as adults and then developing serious health problems like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and liver disease
Obesity rates among children in Asia-Pacific are rising at a rapid rate, and more action is needed to encourage healthier lifestyles and ease pressure on fledgling health care systems, researchers said.
The number of overweight children under five rose 38 per cent between 2000 and 2016 in the region, and the problem is growing, said Sridhar Dharmapuri, a food safety and nutrition officer at the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Bangkok.
“The rate of growth in obesity in Asia-Pacific is higher than in many other countries,” Dharmapuri said. “While the United States leads the way on obesity rates, the number of overweight children in Asia-Pacific is rising rapidly, and many countries in this region are now among the most health-threatened in the world.”
The cost to the Asia-Pacific region of citizens being overweight or obese is US$166 billion a year, a recent report by the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) said.
Adult obesity rates are highest in the United States, Mexico, New Zealand and Hungary, and lowest in Japan and South Korea, according to a report on member states by the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
