Almost one-fifth of the Bangladeshi adult population is overweight, with an increase of 10 percentage point in the number of overweight or obese people over the past three decades, according to a global study.
Although only 7% Bangladeshis were overweight or obese in 1980, the rate climbed to 17% in 2013; however, the rising trend was comparatively lower among children as there was now 4.5% overweight children compared to 3% in 1980.
The figures were found by a first-of-its-kind analysis of trend data from 188 countries.
The study, titled “Global, regional, and national prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adults during 1980–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013,” was conducted by an international consortium of researchers led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, and published in leading medical journal The Lancet on May 29.
“For overweight and obesity to be rising to the point where nearly one in five adults is too heavy, we must look for ways to change behaviour and change policy,” said Dr Aliya Naheed, associate scientist at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Bangladesh (ICDDRB) and one of the paper’s co-authors.
However, of the 17% of overweight adults in Bangladesh, just 4% were obese, while obesity rates in children and adolescents remain at about 1.5%.
Being overweight is defined as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) or weight-to-height ratio between 25 and 30, while obesity is defined as having a BMI equal to or greater than 30.
Health risks such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and chronic kidney disease increase when a person’s BMI exceeds 23. In 2010, obesity and overweight were estimated to have caused 3.4 million deaths globally, most of which were from cardiovascular causes. Research indicates that if left unchecked, the rise in obesity could lead to future declines in life expectancy.
“Being overweight caries significant health risks, and those risks are greatly increased for obese individuals,” said Alan Lopez, laureate professor at the University of Melbourne and a co-founder of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study.
“Unlike tobacco control, there is very little evidence that public heath campaigns or industry regulatory mechanisms are yet having an impact. Health authorities across Asia need to take the population health consequences of weight gain much more seriously,” he added.
South Asia has seen a steady increase in overweight and obesity since 1980, with the rate of overweight or obese adults rising from 16% to 21% in 2013; but the region also has the lowest child overweight/obesity prevalence of 6% and the lowest child obesity prevalence of 3%.
Within the region, Pakistan has the highest obesity rate of 14% for adults, and Bhutan has the highest obesity rate of 6% for children. South Asia also has the smallest gender gap in adult obesity among all regions: 4.8% for male and 5.2% for female.
“In the last three decades, not one country has achieved success in reducing obesity rates, and we expect obesity to rise steadily as incomes rise in low- and middle-income countries in particular, unless urgent steps are taken to address this public health crisis,” said Dr Christopher Murray, director of the IHME and a co-founder of the GBD study.
In developed countries, increases in obesity that began in the 1980s and accelerated from 1992 to 2002 have slowed since 2006. Conversely, in developing countries increases are likely to continue.
The global study found that among children and adolescents, obesity has increased substantially worldwide.
Between 1980 and 2013, the prevalence of overweight/obese children and adolescents increased by nearly 50%. In 2013, more than 22% of girls and nearly 24% of boys living in developed countries were found to be overweight or obese.
Rates are also on the rise among children and adolescents in the developing world, where nearly 13% of boys and more than 13% of girls are overweight or obese.
The findings were disclosed in a press release signed by Shahreen Haq, media manager (communications and development) of the ICDDRB.