More than half of Malaysians are fat, says survey

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- More than half of Malaysian adults are overweight because they eat too much and exercise too little, a news report said Friday, citing a national survey.

Ethnic Indians, a minority among Malaysia's 26 million people, are the fattest of all, the New Straits Times reported.

The newspaper said the Malaysian Shape of the Nation survey found that 54 percent of Malaysian adults -- 48 percent of men and 62 percent of women -- are overweight when tested for abdominal obesity.

In comparison, the prevalence of abdominal obesity in Singapore is 24 percent in men and 48 percent in women, it said.

The survey of 1,959 people was conducted in May and June by 90 doctors across the country. The newspaper did not give a margin of error.

The survey, initiated by pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Aventis and conducted by Malaysian medical officers, measured the subjects' waists, body mass index, blood pressure, blood glucose and lipid levels.

A spokeswoman at the National Heart Institute, which took part in the survey, was not available on Friday. Another officer who answered the phone at the institute declined to comment. Calls to a Sanofi-Aventis representative went unanswered.

Abdominal girth was one of the key indicators in the survey, with a waist of more than 90 centimeters for men and more than 80 centimeters for women considered obese, the newspaper said.

It said 63.4 percent of Malaysian Indians were fat, followed by 53.5 percent of ethnic Malays, 50.8 percent of ethnic Chinese and 45.2 percent of other ethnic groups.

Dr. Robaayah Zambahari, head of cardiology at the National Heart Institute, said Malaysians are becoming fatter because of prosperity and an unhealthy lifestyle, the newspaper said.

It quoted her as saying that Malaysians eat too much, especially fast food and carbonated drinks, and are too lazy to use stairs or exercise.

The survey found that the number of overweight people has more than doubled over the past 10 years -- in tandem with the country's economic prosperity, which has provided rich and plentiful food. This has resulted in more Malaysians suffering from heart problems, hypertension and diabetes.

"Our study shows that 13.5 percent of the adult population is diabetic compared with only 8.3 percent in 1996," Robaayah was quoted as saying.

Heart disease is the main cause of death in Malaysia. (AP)

September 29, 2006

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