China warned over rising obesity

[acmejack]

People in China are becoming overweight at an alarming rate, a Chinese medical professor has said.

Professor Wu Yangfeng said that in the 15 years between 1985 and 2000, the number of overweight and obese children increased 28-fold.

He made his comments in a special China edition of the British Medical Journal.

The edition also looks at the impact of China's one child policy, the increase in chronic disease caused by smoking and lessons learned from Sars.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5261946.stm

[KurtNYC]

1. I think people the world over are going to have to get

past the idea that no one should waste food / "eat everything on your plate." Food has never been cheaper or more plentiful. We should be ready to throw extra food away rather than damage our health.

And food is exceedingly cheap compared to the cost of health care. The WHO says that Chinese are among the groups that have a higher than average probability of developing diabetes.

[acmejack]

2. Processed Food I think is the culprit.

As people move away from fresh food they prepare themselves, obesity surges.

[KurtNYC]

3. Some point to calorie dense foods: meat, eggs and dairy

Increasing affluence and a more Westernized diet fit with the timing of this increase in obesity.

And with more and more people, especially in the cities, eating greater quantities of meat, eggs and dairy products, and less vegetables, doctors warn that obesity could become China's biggest health threat.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/760787.stm

And I agree with you that processed food is problematic.