Obesity prevalence in Nepal: public health challenges in a low-income nation during an alarming worldwide trend.
The future toll of the obesity epidemic will likely hit hardest in low- and middle-income countries. Ongoing urbanization promotes risk factors including sedentary lifestyle and fat- and sugar-laden diets. Low-income countries like Nepal experience a double disease burden: infectious diseases as well as rising incidence of noncommunicable diseases (e.g., cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus) frequently characterized by obesity. Nepal currently directs efforts towards curing disease but pays little attention to preventive actions. This article highlights obesity prevalence in Nepal, delineates the challenges identified by our pilot study (including low health literacy rates), and suggests strategies to overcome this trend.
Vaidya
Abhinav
A
Nordic School of Public Health, Gothenburg, Sweden. dr.abhinavaidya@gmail.com
Shakya
Suraj
S
Krettek
Alexandra
A
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004041:Dietary Fats; D019422:Dietary Sucrose; D005260:Female; D014943:Global Health; D015438:Health Behavior; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009390:Nepal / Q000453:epidemiology; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011203:Poverty / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D011634:Public Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015980:Public Health Practice; D012307:Risk Factors; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
D004041:Dietary Fats; D019422:Dietary Sucrose