The hefty burden gets heavier

PUTRAJAYA: There has been a surge in the number of overweight and obese Malaysians in the past decade, according to the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2023.

“A persistent rise in the prevalence of overweight and obesity was observed, which has surged by nearly 10 points over a decade from 44.5% in 2011 to 54.4% in 2023,” the report stated.

The report said the trend of overweight and obesity was measured according to the Body Mass Index (BMI) of above or equivalent to 25kg/sq m.

Also noted in the report was that abdominal obesity among adults Malaysians also saw a surge to almost a 10-point rise, from 45.4% in 2011 to 54.5% in 2023.

Abdominal obesity is based on waist circumference for men with above or equivalent to a 90cm waist or 80cm for women.

The NHMS also noted that 95.1% of adult Malaysians do not consume adequate fruits and vegetables.

“On average, adults consume only two servings of fruits or vegetables instead of the recommended five servings (per day),” the report stated.

Based on the report, 13.5% of Malaysians above 60 have adequate fruit intake while it was 13.9% for those between 50 and 59.

The lowest intake was from those age between 18 and 19 (7.1%) followed by the 20-29 age group (9%), 30-39 (11.4%), and 40-49 (12.7%)

The NHMS 2023 also noted that one in five Malaysians do not drink enough plain water every day.

Between six and eight 250ml glasses of water is the proper daily intake.

The NHMS 2023 Report is based on data collection sessions conducted between July and September last year.

A total of 13,616 respondents participated in the survey, representing an overall response rate of 83.2%.