The illusion that obesity is a healthy and happy life

 The rate of obesity among women is increasing in Nepal

Kathmandu. 

Generally, there is a general belief that a person suffering from malnutrition is thin. In Nepali society, obese people are considered happy and healthy. If you have the same thinking, you are confused. Obesity Not all people are healthy and happy. And lean people are not the only ones who suffer from malnutrition. People with malnutrition can also become obese.

Obesity rates among women and children in Nepal are rising alarmingly. Health experts say that increasing the rate of obesity is not synonymous with a healthy and happy life.

According to Kedar Raj Parajuli, head of the nutrition branch under the Family Welfare Division, people underweight or underweight may be malnourished according to their age group. "Malnutrition can affect people of all age groups," he said.

Lately, obesity has increased among Nepali women. In 1996, the obesity rate among Nepali women was only 2 percent. The rate of obesity among women is increasing at an average rate of one percent every year, according to the Nutrition Branch.

Currently, the rate of obesity among women in Nepal has reached 22 percent. According to the multi-sectoral nutrition plan, the target is to reduce it to 18 by 2022. Similarly, the World Health Organization has set a target of 15 percent by 2025, while the Sustainable Development Program has set a target of 12 percent by 2030.

Dr. Aruna Upreti, a nutritionist, says that increasing the rate of obesity in women is not a good sign. She believes that obesity among women has increased as the number of people eating unhealthy food in hotels and restaurants is increasing in the name of busyness in urban areas.

"It's wrong to think that eating unhealthy foods can lead to obesity and good health," she says. "Weight gain can be caused by eating out-of-home foods that give the tongue a sweet taste."

In the past, most women emphasized on home-made healthy foods such as millet, maize, fapar, nuts, and home-grown non-organic foods, which led to a low incidence of obesity, she said.

Parajuli, head of the nutrition department, also says that obesity is gradually increasing among women in the urban areas with the introduction of artificial leaves.

According to the Nutrition Branch under the Family Welfare Division, the rate of obesity is increasing not only among women but also among children under the age of five. Currently, the obesity rate among children is 2.1 percent. According to Parajuli, the head of the nutrition department, the obesity of children and the low weight of children under the age of five have become a challenge for Nepal.

Currently, the underweight rate of children in Nepal is 27 percent. The government aims to reduce the rate of underweight children to 20 percent by 2022. Similarly, according to the Sustainable Development Goals, the target is to reduce the rate of underweight children to 10 percent by 2030.

According to Sharma, malnutrition and malnutrition of women, children and adolescents are increasing in Nepal. The number of obese women and children is high in big cities of Nepal. Upreti says. Until now, a small number of women in rural areas have been suffering from obesity, she said.

In Nepal, when people get sick, they pay attention to nutritious food. According to Parajuli, obese women have various health problems. Lack of nutrients in the body leads to bloating, malnutrition, anemia, weight gain or loss. Therefore, there is a need to broaden the understanding of nutrition from rural to urban areas, says Chief Parajuli.

In urban areas, the practice of taking tablets without taking vitamins A, B, C, calcium and other nutrients has increased. Upreti said.

Nepal has set a target of raising the obesity rate of children to 1.4 percent by 2022. Similarly, the World Health Organization aims to reduce the obesity rate of children in Nepal to 1 percent by 2025. According to the Sustainable Development Goals, this rate is planned to fall to around 1 percent by 2030.

Parajuli, head of the nutrition branch, says that the local and provincial levels should take ownership of various programs for children to achieve the mentioned goal.

The obesity rate among children in the United States is 25 percent. Most of the children there insist on eating leafy food made outside the house. According to Dr. Upreti, various types of health problems have appeared in the children who have gained weight unnecessarily due to pet food.

She said that obesity has increased among women and children in Nepal due to the emphasis on leafy food in urban areas.