On March 4th, World Obesity Day is celebrated, an important occasion to raise awareness about the increase in this disease throughout the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes obesity as one of the main public health challenges internationally. This chronic condition tends to worsen over time if not managed appropriately.
WHO projections indicate that approximately 167 million individuals globally could face problems of overweight or obesity by 2025. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) reveals that, in the Americas alone, obesity was the cause of approximately 2.8 million deaths in 2021, due to heart disease, hypertension, stroke and some types of cancer.
Rates of overweight and obesity have tripled in the Americas over the past 50 years. And these conditions affect around 62.5% of the population, the highest regional prevalence in the world. Levels of overweight and obesity among children are also increasing due mainly to low levels of breastfeeding and poor diets low in fruit and vegetables and high in ultra-processed foods and drinks.
“It is essential to raise awareness about the urgent need to combat this global epidemic and interrupt this cycle of increasing obesity”, warns Prof. Dr. Durval Ribas Filho, nutritionist, endocrinologist, Fellow of the Obesity Society FTOS – USA and president of OPEN – Brazilian Association of Nutrology.
For the specialist, taking care of overweight and obesity is a health issue and not just aesthetics. “Today, pharmacology offers several medications that, combined with a healthy diet and physical activity, can give obese people a better quality of life. In controlled obesity, progressive losses represent progress, as every 10 kilos less is reflected in a significant improvement in the disease’s comorbidities,” he explains.
With welcome and without discrimination
The Prof. Dr. Ribas notes that obesity can also trigger social and behavioral problems that generate discrimination, starting from childhood. “Fatphobia is a social disease and combating it does not just consist of fighting to ensure that obese people are not disturbed and become victims of potential bullying”, he observes.
In his book “Obeso Acoled” (2021), in partnership with psychiatrist Dr. Arthur Kaufman, he highlights that embarrassing and even unusual situations are not rare with obese people. These facts add to the list of other prejudices such as racial, ethnic, religious and sexual.
“In addition to the physical risks, obesity is also a trigger for emotional problems, which include difficulty socializing and, often, even carrying out activities with friends, at work or in a romantic relationship. It is a discriminatory process, with very strong stigmatization, in all its aspects, where obese people are not welcomed by society. On the contrary, it suffers from prejudice”, highlights the expert.
