Child Obesity In Malaysia

Childhood obesity is a serious public health problem affecting children and adolescents globally.

Child obesity in malaysia. Overweight obesity rate in children and adolescents has increased over the years. Globesity is a growing problem often associated with the riches of the developed world but as the term coined to describe the global spike in obesity and diet related diseases suggests the health crisis is making few exceptions as children in malaysia have been labelled the fattest in the region. In the case of the poor the children tend to consume lower priced less. The ministry of health in malaysia has taken a school based intervention to beat obesity in children by banning certain types of food from being sold in public school canteens.

In the case of the poor the children tend to consume lower priced less nutritious but. The banned food items include instant noodles candies preserved foods and carbonated drinks. Up to 30 of malaysian children were found to be overweight obese. The concern is understandable as obesity not only increases the risk of contracting various chronic diseases but also puts a strain on the finances of governments in terms of healthcare allocations.

Thus in malaysia childhood obesity equally affects both the rich and the poor. Farhan not his real name was taken to a private hospital by his parents to seek treatment for an infection on his right leg. How common is overweight problem in malaysia. The rich families make poor food choices while the poor families consume the cheaper but energy densed processed food.

As shown in figure 4 malaysia s total cost for obesity as a percentage of nominal gdp ranks top at a range between 0 4 and 0 8 far ahead of all other countries in asean. However in developing countries like malaysia childhood obesity is prevalent among rich and poor families. The poor families may not have enough money hence consume the less nutritious but high calorie foods which are usually cheaper while the rich families can afford to buy food sometimes make the unwise decision of buying the wrong kinds of food high calories. A recent study estimates that worldwide gdp losses both from direct and indirect costs of diabetes from 2011 to 2030 will total us 1 7tril comprising us 900bil for high income countries and us 800bil for low and middle.

The main cause of obesity in children is exogenous obesity which is due to external factors. The issue of obesity is nothing new in malaysia or in the world for that matter. According to the world health organisation who obesity has been a global public health concern since 1975.