17pc of Bangladeshi adults obese

At least 17 percent of the adult population of Bangladesh are obese, and so are at an increased risk of having cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, and chronic kidney disease, according to a study of Washington University.
This figure is more than double the figure of 1980 when it was seven percent. The study says the reason for this is consumption of more calories and less exercise. However, only 4.5 percent of children were found to be obese in 2013 compared to three percent in 1980.
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at Washington University conducted the study with data from 188 countries, said an IHME press release. The findings were published in the world famous medical journal, The Lancet, on May 29.
 “For overweight and obesity to be rising to the point where nearly 1 in 5 adults is too heavy, we must look for ways to change behaviour and policy,” said Dr Aliya Naheed, a co-author of the paper.
In 2010, obesity caused 3.4 million deaths globally, says the study.
Dr Naheed, associate scientist at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), said more adult women in urban settings are obese in Bangladesh.
Children from the upper class consume more junk food, and thus more of urban children are obese, she added.
In South Asia, obesity among adults increased from 16 percent in 1980 to 21 percent in 2013.