The government’s focus on treating chronic disease neglects the importance of obesity and the benefits of preventive health measures tailored to gender and socioeconomic circumstances.
Reinforcement of the idea that exercise will lead to weight loss acts as a disincentive for those who stick to their exercise goals to only find the scales haven’t turned in their favour.
With one can of cool drink containing six teaspoons of sugar – your recommended sugar intake for the day – there is a need to reduce the number of sugar-sweetened beverages South Africans consume.
It affects nearly one in five women, and half go on to develop type 2 diabetes. It’s one of the great intervention opportunities that public health overseers keep ignoring.
Most women (85%) and a small number of men have cellulite, usually on the thighs, buttocks and upper arms. It’s a normal pattern of fat for people of all shapes and sizes.
Most of us know that obesity is a growing problem across the globe but would you call it a disease? While it may seem like a semantic debate, it is actually a serious issue with major implications.
Want to drop a dress or pants size? Then losing five kilograms, or about 5% of your body weight will help that zipper start to close with ease. In case you need another reason, keeping a small amount of…
The energy imbalance gap is how many calories you consume versus how many you burn. Understanding how it differs among different populations could lead to better policies to target obesity.
Do you eat only when you’re actually hungry? Many of us eat even when our bodies don’t need food. Just the thought of food entices us to eat. We think about food when we see other people eating, when we…
This month, the toxic combination of extreme heat and summer holidays will probably mean that you’re going to expose more flesh than you would like to someone whose opinion you care about. January is the…
If you’re an adult and live in Australia, you’re more likely to be overweight or obese than not: 63% and 37% respectively. This excess weight is associated with increased premature death and disease, and…
The number of people with diabetes in the UK has more than doubled over the past two decades, with more than 3.8 million people currently affected. Around 10% of them have Type 1 diabetes, which is caused…
The idea that people can be healthy at any weight has gained credence in recent years, despite widespread evidence that obesity creates health risks. While the idea is attractive, it’s also dangerous because…
Professor and Programme Director, SA MRC Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science - PRICELESS SA (Priority Cost Effective Lessons in Systems Strengthening South Africa), University of the Witwatersrand