CAPE TOWN - Obesity is a disease with medical consequences estimated at $1 trillion (about R15 trillion) by 2025. This has been worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic, as those living with obesity are twice as likely to be admitted to hospital for the disease.
Childhood obesity often continues into adulthood and increases the risk of non-communicable diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, as well as premature death and disability.
At the psychosocial level, children living with obesity are more likely to experience low self-esteem, depression, and social isolation.
World Obesity Day (WOD), commemorated each year on this day, is an opportunity for the UN Children’s Fund (Unicef) and our partners to increase awareness, encourage advocacy, share good practices, and improve policies to tackle the rising global challenge.
This year, the focus of the WOD campaign is “Everybody Needs to Act”. This calls for collective change at global, national, and local levels to tackle obesity rates, reduce stigma and address the systems that enable the rising prevalence of obesity across the world.
Approximately 800 million people live with obesity globally and millions more are at risk, with a 60% expected increase among children by 2030. No country is expected to reach the 2025 Global Nutrition Target set by the World Health Assembly of a zero increase in childhood overweight among children under five years, with the highest increases in Africa and Asia.
About 13% of South African children under five years are overweight or obese. Among adolescents, 31% of 15- to 19-year-old girls are overweight or obese compared to 9.6% of boys.
Policy decisions must be taken on the basis of best available evidence. Addressing the need for timely and context-specific data to develop adequate health policies and interventions, Unicef South Africa recently conducted a study on diet and physical activity among youth and adolescents aged 10 to 19, and 20 to 24. The study revealed that young people in South Africa struggle to follow a balanced diet and to engage in sufficient physical activity.
The main barriers are the lack of affordable, nutritious foods available in and around schools, the influence of social media advertisements of unhealthy products, the eating habits of family and friends, and safety concerns around being physically active.
The recommendations from the study include increased co-ordination at government level to address the marketing of unhealthy foods to children, adolescents and youth, and the need to ensure that schools promote healthy diets and sufficient physical activity.
Unicef is pleased that the recommendations from the study have been included in the draft National Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Obesity (2022-2027).
Unicef also supported the Department of Basic Education to develop a blueprint for Improving the South African School Food Environment, with guiding principles and key messages that include the implementation of the guidelines on tuck shops, regulating advertising by the food industry in schools, and regulating the foods sold in and around school premises.
It is imperative that collective action is taken to halt the rise of obesity among children and young people in South Africa. This includes strong policy coordination across relevant government departments, as well as actions at national, provincial, municipal and district levels in partnership with civil society.
While governments are responsible for implementing and enforcing regulations to prevent and control rising obesity levels, all levels of society have a role to play.
The food industry, in particular, is an important player to ensure that nutritious foods are accessible for children, clear food labelling to support informed food choices is provided, and the marketing and advertising of unhealthy foods to children and young people is discontinued.
Unicef and our partners are committed to supporting all efforts to halt the rise in obesity in South Africa.
World Obesity Day reminds us of the urgent need to protect and support the health of all children and young people to ensure that they have the chance to develop and thrive.
Tshitaudzi is a nutrition specialist, and Castro is a health officer for Unicef South Africa