KARACHI, May 14: Health experts have stressed the need for adoption of a motto “Eat Less, Walk More” to defeat obesity.

Prof. A. Samad Shera, secretary-general, Pakistan Diabetic Association, in a presentation “Obesity and Associated Factors” here on Wednesday cited diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease, cancer and arthritis of weight-bearing joints among many of the diseases caused due to obesity.

He said there was a need to modify life-style by the people to check growing incidence of obesity-induced ailments in the country.

Mentioning that Pakistan is no exception to the global phenomenon, he said countrymen should take sustained care to control the problem and contain the growing trend of sedentary lifestyle.

Underscoring the need for a public awareness, he said complications of obesity also include gall-stones, infertility, hirsutism, pregnancy-related complications, breathlessness, sleep apnoea and cancers of breast, ovary, gall-bladder, colon.

Obesity was defined as a state of excessive fat. Any individual weighing 20 per cent more than the desired weight could be identified as obese.

Men of five feet height should ideally have 106 lbs weight, plus six lbs for each additional inch. Women having a height of five feet can have 100 lbs weight plus five lbs for each additional inch.

The most effective intervention to control obesity, he said, was behavioural change. The motto “Eat Less, Walk More” should be adopted across the board.

Prof Shera in this context particularly stressed the need for preventing obesity among kids, assuming the age of seven years and above, adding any negligence enhances their risk to be inflicted with above mentioned diseases.

Regarding use of drug to reduce weight, he said none of these are presently available in the country. However, these generally have their side-effects as diarrhoeal episodes.

Prof. Shera also briefly discussed the surgical option to remove excessive fat by operation.

The diabetologist mentioning that relative risk of type two diabetes increases with greater body mass index (BMI) reminded that compared to current number of 170 million people with diabetes worldwide, the number is feared to increase by 300 million by the year 2025 and three fourth of these diabetics will be from the developing countries.

The WHO estimates (1995-2025) identifies Pakistan among the top 10 countries facing constant surge in the number of diabetics.—APP