Obese

We are now measuring ourselves against the statistics of other Europeans. The latest item was that Maltese men are the most obese in the European Union. Maltese women are only third in this negative list.

We seem to excel in negative statistics. Eurostat is still using the Body Mass Index (BMI) as the criterion. In actual fact there is a strong movement against using the BMI as the measure of being overweight or obese, for the simple reason that a person may have a lot of weight in muscle, and consequently has a high ratio which is not in his favour. The BMI does not reflect the amount of fat there is in a body, and that may be the most damaging factor. Besides height, there are other factors which influence total body weight, such as the body frame. The width of your shoulders has some influence on total body weight.

Certainly I speak as a layman who has over the years taken some interest in the subject. What I do not like in the current fashion of discussing body weight, especially for women, is that the main concern is appearance and little attention is paid to the effects on health. Losing weight has become a business for some, with little professional attention to the needs and circumstances of the person.

This is not a problem for Malta alone. The media have created a symbol of the perfect figure. Then we hear about the tragedies of models who die as a result of their frantic efforts to be skin and bones only.

My humble opinion is that we do not care about the ingestion of fat and lots of simple carbohydrates which the body uses, but then stores any surplus as fat. We have changed our taste buds over time, and naturally we have become attracted to sweet and oily foods.

First we indulge and then hope for a miraculous diet that will burn the fat that has accumulated. The worst side of the story is that children have been brought up, and are being brought up, with a strong attraction to fatty and sweet foods. Some catering establishments are all out to attract children to their tables, knowing that an implanted taste remains for life. And what are we doing to counteract such tendencies, especially in children?

Health problems

Obesity is not a problem of appearances. It is a question of health problems for which the community has to pay, apart from the individual. The connection between obesity and diabetes and high blood pressure has long been established. For both, doctors suggest that there should be a change in lifestyle, which means a reduced food intake, which may be difficult at an age when patterns and habits have been fossilised for the individual concerned. Very often the damage is irreparable. The cost to the community is high indeed. The British are also facing this problem and they are tackling it as a national concern at the political level.

Although much is being done, I believe the time has come for some form of "censure" in the media about the attraction of food which though tasty, is not healthy. Watch any cookery programme on television and the emphasis in undeniably on taste. Calculate the fats in the preparation of a particular food and it is enough for a whole week. We expect our taste buds to enjoy and then tax the system to remove the garbage. What I mean by "censure" is that there should be a clear indication to the consumer about the amounts of fats and sugar that may be consumed by a normal portion and what percentage of daily intake it represents.

At times we hear about the need for exercise to strengthen the muscles and burn off fat. It is as if we are allowed to consume as much as we like, then we try to burn it off. I do believe that there should be awareness of the fact that,before embarking on exercise to reduce fat, the first step should be that the reduction comes from the mouth. When one reads about the length of time needed in strenuous exercise to burn off a small portion of fat that is gulped down so quickly, one immediately understands the disproportion between effort and result. What goes down in one second needs half an hour of exercise. The consumer has a right to be informed about such matters.

Are we monitoring our metabolism?

Are we monitoring how our metabolism is working? A recent programme on Italian TV featured a discussion about iodine and its impact on the thyroid which influences our metabolism. As we grow older, we tend to lose its normal functioning. There was a strong case for the way iodine is ingested. We happen to live by the sea and that gives us a beneficial aerosol. Exercise helps the metabolism. If we become sluggish, then the body, rather than burning fat, stores it.

Are we doing enough to teach people that vegetables are important? No, that they are indispensable? Are we teaching people to stay slim by healthy eating? Are we teaching alternative ways of eating which are tasty and healthy at the same time? This should be our concern. Please do not accuse me for arguing that everyone should be a vegetarian, as I have been for 21 years. The only thing I can safely say is that I have changed my taste buds.