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16 October 2014

Obesity, malnutrition on the rise

Daily News

South Africa is both a land of plenty – and a land of too little.

And it was this juxtaposition that came under the spotlight on Thursday as charity organisations and government bodies banded together to observe World Food Day, National Nutrition Week and National Obesity Week highlighting the dangers of both malnutrition and obesity.

A study conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) in 2012 and released in August last year used the responses of 25 532 respondents via questionnaire; 12 025 participants who were physically examined by a doctor; and 8 078 who provided a blood specimen.

It revealed shocking results, related to the two trends.

“Over almost a decade, the prevalence of overweight has increased from 10.6 percent to 18.2 percent, while that of obesity remained unchanged (from 4.5 percent to 4.78 percent) in children between the ages of two and six years old.”

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Daily News