Weight Matter and Chronic Diseases

Obesity and overweight is a very challenging health issue in Canada, it can increase the risk of several chronic diseases, such as hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis and certain types of cancer. According to a report done by Statistics Canada in 2009, 17.9% of Canadians aged 18 and older, roughly 4.4 million, reported height and weight that classified them as obese, virtually unchanged from 2008; however, from 2003 to 2009, obesity among men rose from 16.0% to 19.0%, and among women, from 14.5% to 16.7%. Moreover, 59.2% of Canadian men and 43.9% of women were in the category of overweight.¹ All the results were based on the guidelines of Body Mass Index (BMI), and it represents that chronic diseases is a contemporary big health issue which Canada is currently facing(see picture1).

 Picture1 
Source From: Statistics Canada, Overweight and obese adults (self-reported), 2009

In 2005, World Health Organization(WHO) published a report, calls Facing The Facts: The Impact of Chronic Disease in Canada, it states that chronic diseases are projected to account for 89% of all deaths in Canada(see picture2).²

 Picture2
Source From: WHO, Facing The Facts: The Impact of Chronic Disease in Canada

In addition, WHO agreed that overweight and obesity is the major cause of chronic diseases, and they predicted that the prevalence of overweight in Canada is expected to increase in both men and women over the next 10 years(see picture3).

 Picture3 
Source From: WHO, Facing The Facts: The Impact of Chronic Disease in Canada

According to the suggestion of WHO, healthy diet, regular physical activity and avoidance of tobacco products can effectively prevent at least 80% of premature heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes, and 40% of cancer. Therefore, if you don't want to suffer from those chronic diseases, you should have physical activities regularly, keep a balanced diet and get away from tobacco and alcohol; it is also the way to achieve and maintain a healthy weight.

Reference:

¹Statistics Canada, Overweight and obese adults (self-reported), 2009:

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-625-x/2010002/article/11255-eng.htm

²World Health Organization, Facing The Facts: The Impact of Chronic Disease in Canada, 2005. Available online:
http://www.who.int/chp/chronic_disease_report/media/CANADA.pdf