Obesity In Some Muslim Countries

In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy.

Reported in arabiya news by Jennifer Bell, Al Arabiya English: Almost 60 pct of Saudi population overweight, obese. Almost 60 percent of Saudi Arabia’s adult population are either overweight or obese, according to the latest figures revealed ahead of World Obesity Day – but the Kingdom still fairs better than its GCC neighbors.

According to the Global Obesity Observatory, 20.2 percent of people in the Kingdom are classed as obese – having a Body Mass Index (a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters) over 30 – while a further 38.2 percent are classed as overweight (a BMI over 25).

However, Saudi Arabia has the least prevalence of obesity in the GCC.
Kuwait has the highest prevalence – with almost 80 percent of its population overweight or obese – followed by Bahrain (72.4 percent), Qatar (70.1 percent), the UAE (67.9 percent) and Oman (66.2 percent).

When it comes to children, 10.5 percent of the under-18 population in Saudi Arabia is either overweight or obese, compared to half (49.5 percent) of children in Kuwait.

The global prevalence of obesity has increased manifold in the past few decades and the Middle Eastern regions notably are reporting extremely high obesity rates. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), obesity rates have nearly tripled since 1975 and five times in children and adolescents. It is a problem that affects people of all ages.

Sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical exercise and high calorie diets are common contributory factors to the increasing prevalence of obesity. [End o quote]

Indeed, whether the above information is accurate or not, one must strive to follow the Sunnah in this affair. Read here: https://salaficentre.com/2023/03/01/some-causes-of-poor-health/