Some experts have analyzed that more than 500 million people in China are overweight or obese, and the imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure is the direct cause.
China’s National health Commission recently released the “China’s population nutrition and chronic disease status report” pointed out that China’s adult residents overweight rate of more than 50%, of which 16.4% belong to obese; 6 to 17 years old and under 6 years old people overweight and obesity rate reached 19% and 10.4% respectively. Experts analyze that more than 500 million people in China are overweight or obese, and the imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure is the direct cause.
Comprehensive media reports, the State Council Information Office recently released the “China’s Population Nutrition and Chronic Diseases Report (2020)”, which shows that the average weight of men and women aged 18 and above is 69.6 kg and 59 kg respectively, an increase of 3.4 kg and 1.7 kg respectively compared with the results released in 2015. The rate of overweight and obesity among residents of all age groups in urban and rural areas continued to rise, with 34.3% and 16.4% of residents aged 18 years and above being overweight and obese, respectively.
In the children and adolescents section, the overweight and obesity rates of children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 were 11.1% and 7.9% respectively, while the overweight and obesity rates of children under 6 years old were 6.8% and 3.6% respectively.
“The imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure is the direct cause of overweight and obesity in individuals,” Beijing Daily quoted Zhao Wenhua, chief expert in nutrition at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as saying that the prevention and control of overweight and obesity is a systematic project that requires the joint efforts of the government, society, individuals and families.
Decades ago, Chinese people were unable to fill their stomachs for fear of famine, but after the reform and opening up, China’s rapid economic growth has led to major changes in people’s lifestyles, eating habits and exercise levels, the BBC report noted. In 2002, for example, only 29 percent of adults were overweight; today more than half of adults are currently overweight or obese, a total estimated at more than 500 million.
The report also says that the reasons for China’s “growing waistline” include a decline in physical activity among the population, with less than a quarter of adults exercising at least once a week. Growing demand for meat and reduced consumption of fruit are also cited as reasons for the rising weight.
In October 2020, several Chinese departments jointly developed an “Implementation Plan for the Prevention and Control of Obesity in Children and Adolescents” in an effort to “start at an early age”. Some local governments and enterprises have also taken the initiative, such as the city of Changzhi in Shanxi Province, which in October 2020 included the results of naked eye vision and weight assessment in the secondary school examination, with weight accounting for five points; the Internet rental company “Ziyu” also included weight as an important guideline for staff promotion. But these measures have also sparked controversy over “discrimination.
The report also found that the base of people with chronic diseases in China is also expanding. The data show that in 2019, deaths from chronic diseases accounted for 88.5% of all deaths in China, with 80.7% of deaths from cardiovascular disease, cancer, and chronic respiratory disease.
Another report also shows that Chinese adults have not only gained weight but also grown taller. the average height of men aged 18 to 44 is 169.7 cm and 158.0 cm for women. This is an increase of 1.2 cm and 0.8 cm respectively compared to the 2015 figures.
According to the report, the report was prepared by the National Health Commission, which organized several departments to monitor and compile statistics on chronic diseases and nutrition of the population between 2015 and 2019, covering 600 million people in China, with more than 600,000 people surveyed on site.
A woman measures her weight at a weight loss hospital in Tianjin.
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