Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2010, 7(6), 2726-2744; doi:10.3390/ijerph7062726
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Obesity Prevalence in Nepal: Public Health Challenges in a Low-Income Nation during an Alarming Worldwide Trend

Abhinav Vaidya 1,2,† email, Suraj Shakya 1,3,† email and Alexandra Krettek 1,4,* email
1 Nordic School of Public Health, Gothenburg, Sweden 2 Department of Community Medicine, Kathmandu Medical College, Duwakot, Bhaktapur, Nepal 3 Department of Ophthalmology, Nepal Medical College and Teaching Hospital, Jorpati, Kathmandu, Nepal 4 Department of Internal Medicine, Institute of Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Sweden † These authors contributed equally to the study.
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 11 May 2010; in revised form: 5 June 2010 / Accepted: 8 June 2010 / Published: 23 June 2010
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Obesity and Public Health)
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Abstract: The future toll of the obesity epidemic will likely hit hardest in low- and middle-income countries. Ongoing urbanization promotes risk factors including sedentary lifestyle and fat- and sugar-laden diets. Low-income countries like Nepal experience a double disease burden: infectious diseases as well as rising incidence of noncommunicable diseases (e.g., cardiovascular disease and diabetes mellitus) frequently characterized by obesity. Nepal currently directs efforts towards curing disease but pays little attention to preventive actions. This article highlights obesity prevalence in Nepal, delineates the challenges identified by our pilot study (including low health literacy rates), and suggests strategies to overcome this trend.
Keywords: obesity; Nepal; epidemic; diabetes; cardiovascular disease

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MDPI and ACS Style

Vaidya, A.; Shakya, S.; Krettek, A. Obesity Prevalence in Nepal: Public Health Challenges in a Low-Income Nation during an Alarming Worldwide Trend. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2010, 7, 2726-2744.

AMA Style

Vaidya A, Shakya S, Krettek A. Obesity Prevalence in Nepal: Public Health Challenges in a Low-Income Nation during an Alarming Worldwide Trend. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2010; 7(6):2726-2744.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Vaidya, Abhinav; Shakya, Suraj; Krettek, Alexandra. 2010. "Obesity Prevalence in Nepal: Public Health Challenges in a Low-Income Nation during an Alarming Worldwide Trend." Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 7, no. 6: 2726-2744.

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