Hongkongers don’t drink enough fluids

Hong Kong – A recent survey has shown that one in two people drink less than eight glasses of fluid a day, the minimum recommended by nutritionists. When asked why they didn’t drink more, most people said they didn’t have enough time. Not drinking enough can lead to constipation, dry skin and eventually, dehydration. According to the survey, most people wait until they are thirsty actually means that the body is slightly dehydrated already. Working in air-conditioned offices, working outside or exercising can greatly increase fluid needs because these activities cause a loss of water form the body. The survey was conducted by the Social Sciences Research Centre, Hong Kong, as a follow-up to a similar survey conducted in 1997.

Health fair for Malaysia

Kaula Lumpur – Over 50,000 Malaysians attended a health exhibition organized by the Ministry of Health in Kuala Lumpur in May. Part of the Ministry’s Healthy Lifestyle Campaign, the theme of this years’ exhibition was the importance of exercise. The exhibition included displays from the Nutrition Society of Malaysia, the Malaysian society for the study of Obesity, the National Cancer Society and the Heart Foundation of Malaysia, among others. The food industry and fitness centres were also involved. The key message was “get moving” and the Ministry of Health hopes to encourage the whole country to be more active in an effort to arrest the rising incidence of overweight in all age groups.

Reduced activity levels linked to overweight

Washington- Overweight is no longer confined to developed nations. In fact, the levels of overweight in some lower income and transitional countries are as high as or even higher that those reported for the United States. And the levels are rising. A recent review of the area has attributed this to shift in diet and activity patterns. While there is very little obesity (defined as a body mass index (BMI) of more than 30) in Asia, level for overweight (BMI>25) range from 5-15% of the adult population in most Asian countries. Chinese data shows that people are slowly becoming more overweight in both urban and rural areas, with nearly one in ten people now overweight. In urban Malaysia and Thailand, overweight was reported in more than 20% of adults. The authors point to reduce activity levels as the main culprit in expanding waistlines worldwide providing yet more evidence that keeping active is the key to healthy lifestyle. Popkin BM and Doak CM. “The Obesity Epidemic is a World-wide Phenomenon”, Nutrition Reviews Volume 56, Numver 4 (Part I), April 1998: pp.106-114.

Nine year olds worried about getting fat

Hong Kong- Girls as young as nine are worried about getting fat and almost one in four girls aged between nine and fourteen years have dieted to lose weight according to a survey by the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The study involved 1,944 girls aged nine to fourteen years. More that 50% of girls were afraid of becoming fat and one in tow wanted to be thinner. Thirteen percent watched what they ate to avoid gaining weight. Principal survey investigator and psychology professor Freedom Leong Yiu-Kin said that the results were alarming. “Young Chinese girls becoming concerned about their body weight at such an early age, even before, puberty, indicates how prevalent the slim obsession is among women in our community,” he said.

Voters reject ban on biotechnology

Geneva- Voters in Switzerland overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to outlaw the production and patenting of genetically modified plants in June. Switzerland is a world recognized leader in biotechnology and government and business leaders argued that the initiative would have forced an end to biomedical and pharmaceutical research in the country.