Obesity: the Other Pandemic in Mexico
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Obesity: the Other Pandemic in Mexico

Photo by:   Mohamad Hassan
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Alessa Flores By Alessa Flores | Senior Journalist and Industry Analyst - Mon, 05/18/2020 - 11:47

Age, chronic degenerative and cardiovascular diseases are factors that increase mortality in COVID-19 cases. In Mexico, the average age of the population is 29.2 years but about 73 percent of the population is overweight, 13 percent more than the average for OECD countries that have a rate of 60 percent. In addition, it is estimated that 34 people of obese people in Mexico suffer morbid obesity. Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell mentioned during the afternoon health conference that “the youth of the Mexican population is an advantage in the fight against COVID-19. However, hypertension, diabetes and obesity are counter factors that increase mortality from this disease.”

The true pandemic of the 21st century, according to an article published by José Cordova, Former Ministry of Health (2006-2011), is obesity. As the Mexican population ages, there is a demographic and epidemiological transformation. According to Córdova, this transition has been followed by a higher prevalence in the general population of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dyslipidemia. People in this situation "are far more likely to have cardiovascular problems that considerably shorten their hope and quality of life."

Obesity is currently one of the greatest public health challenges for Mexico. Figures from the ENSANUT 2018 National Health and Nutrition Survey revealed that 39.1 percent of Mexicans over 20 years of age are overweight and 36.1 percent obese, which means that three out of four people have an overweight or obesity problem in the country, together with 8.6 million people reporting having received a diagnosis of diabetes. According to OECD estimates, Mexico grew from having approximately 15 percent of its overweight population in 1996 to close to 75.2 percent in 2019. This means that in almost 25 years obesity increased by 60 percent.


Official figures from the Ministry of Health revealed that seven out of 10 deaths from COVID-19 were related to at least one risk condition such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity, while half of the deaths suffered from two of these conditions. So far, there are 5,177 deaths from COVID-19 in Mexico and 47,144 have been confirmed of being infected.

In addition to the health problems caused by obesity, scholars have also revealed that this condition has a significant impact on a country's public health budget and economic productivity. The current cost of obesity is equivalent to 0.5 percent of GDP and constitutes 9 percent of health spending, according to Córdoba. Between 8 and 10 percent of premature deaths in Mexico are attributed to obesity, while the cost of this premature mortality is estimated at US$1.4 billion. Obesity has many costs and consequences but according to WHO, obesity is more expensive due to the health costs associated with it. Obese people spend 77 percent more on medications and 36 percent more on general health care than others.

Furthermore, the OECD estimated overweight and related diseases will have severe impacts on the Mexican economy. Among the effects is that the Mexican labor force will be reduced by the equivalent of 2.4 million full-time workers per year, since people with overweight and related illnesses are less likely to be employed. If they are, they tend to be less productive. Likewise, the OECD estimates that obesity will account for about 8.9 percent of health spending per year during the period 2020 to 2050. The result will be that the cost of obesity will subtract from the Mexican GDP 5.3 percentage points. In fact, Mexico is the OECD country where overweight, obesity and related diseases will have the greatest impact on GDP between 2020 and 2050.
 

Photo by:   Mohamad Hassan

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