Qatar has the sixth highest rate of obesity among boys in Mena, according to the International Association for the Study of Obesity. More than 300,000 Qataris are now estimated to be diabetic, rising to over 700,000 in 2035.
But Qatar, which spends an estimated $2,200 every year to treat each individual with diabetes, has embarked on a long-term mission to fight the disease head on. “Preventing Diabetes Together,” the initiative by the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) of the ambitious National Diabetes Strategy launched on Saturday by Minister of Public Health HE Abdullah bin Khalid al-Qahtani, aims to help the residents lead a better life in a seven-year campaign.
The Gulf region, no doubt, has high prevalence of obesity and diabetes with most Gulf citizens aged under 30 overweight. Over the decades, the oil windfall has brought unprecedented prosperity and economic growth to the Gulf region, but the resultant luxury-driven passive lifestyle has taken its toll. The Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is now estimated to have the highest comparative diabetes prevalence in the world: One in 10 adults are in danger. And the GCC’s obesity rate for adults is among the world’s highest.
Obesity-related diseases may cost the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council $68bn a year by 2022, equivalent to about 4.5% of its gross domestic product, almost double the 2013 figure, Booz & Co said in a December 2013 study.
Global spending on diabetes treatment already tops $500bn annually, a figure set to reach $750bn by 2030. But the global costs of obesity are even more startling: Close to $2tn and rising, according to the McKinsey Global Institute. The number of people with Type 2 diabetes, a major healthcare cost of obesity, has increased more than tenfold to about 382mn diagnosed cases today from 30mn in 1985. That figure is expected to nearly double by 2035, accounting for an estimated 12% of healthcare costs.
The indirect costs in the wider economy, including lost productivity of those affected, are many times higher.
In Qatar, Action on Diabetes (AoD) - a partnership of the SCH, the Hamad Medical Corp, the Primary Health Care Corp, the Qatar Diabetes Association, Maersk Oil and pharmaceutical firm Novo Nordisk – is already in the forefront of the long-running battle against the disease. The new National Diabetes Strategy is being linked to the National Public Health Strategy 2017–22, which is being prepared, to carry on with preventive healthcare focus of the National Health Strategy 2011–16. Together, all the initiatives complement the Qatar National Vision 2030, which envisage a healthy and prosperous nation.
For sure, all these ambitious plans seek to build a healthier and active nation. But, ultimately, it all boils down to the individuals to make their choice than medical professionals to intervene. Longer-term, monitoring daily food intake and incorporating regular physical activity is key to leading a healthier life.