Gulf Countries Witness Rise in Heart Disease and Diabetes

Gulf countries witness rise in heart disease and diabetes

ABU DHABI, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) — The Gulf countries are witnessing a rapid increase in heart disease, diabetes and other serious illnesses, especially among youngsters who eat too much junk food while exercise little, local newspaper Gulf News reported here Monday.

Leading doctors in the Gulf region have warned that heart disease will become as common in the region as it is in the United States and Europe, both suffering a high incidence of the deadly disease, said the report.

Moreover, serious illnesses including heart disease, diabetes have already posed problems to young people under their 30s in the region.

Experts were quoted as saying that chubby youngsters, many of whom had a poor diet and little exercise, were more likely to develop heart disease and type 2 diabetes as more people in their 30s and 40s in the region suffered from cardiac problems.

Heart disease caused about 35 percent of deaths in the region annually, a figure that could soon increase to 45 percent as it is seen in the United States and Europe if people’s lifestyles failed to improve, said the experts.

The warning came in the wake of a report recently published by the World Health Organization (WHO), which showed that childhood obesity was becoming more prevalent around the world and the Gulf region witnessed a 25 percent increase in obesity over the past decade.

The WHO and the International Diabetes Federation said this week that 10 percent of school-aged children around the globe were overweight or obese.

Besides heart disease, diabetes, obesity is also associated with strokes, cancer and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Doctors advise that youngsters must be encouraged to exercise more and eat healthily and that parents should ensure that their children exercise at least twice a week, on top of any physical activity they have at school.