News item on rising obesity in Indonesia
IRIN, a humanitarian news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has recently reported on the rising number of people with obesity in Indonesia, one of the TANDEM study countries.
The news item states that high-fat foods, imbalanced diets and a lack of physical activity have led to growing levels of obesity in the country, with estimates suggesting that today, 30 million Indonesians are either overweight or obese, compared to 27 million three years ago.
According to the Indonesian Ministry of Health’s director of nutrition, “the prevalence of obesity is not yet that high. However, given the country has a large population and the number is growing, it’s a cause for concern”.
The main reason for this concern is that obesity is a major risk factor for non-communicable diseases, including diabetes. The non-communicable have replaced communicable diseases as the leading cause of death in Indonesia.
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