Overweight issues has proved to be a high concern among Middle Eastern women due to an unhealthy diet and lack of exercise, according to a recent report.

The statistics released by Majid Al Futtaim, a leading shopping mall, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East and North Africa region, conducted in line with World Heart Day, pointed out that of the more than half of the women screened, 62 per cent  were not engaged in exercise activities.

The body mass index (BMI) figures were high, with 33 per cent found overweight ranging between 25 and 29 BMI and 31 per cent found obese with BMI figures of more than 30, compared to the healthy range of 18.5 to 24.9.

However, smoking and diabetes did not show as a big problem areas for women in the Middle East.

Among more than 4,700 women who were screened, seven per cent were smokers and nine per cent had diabetes, while 70 per cent of those with high blood sugar were healthy and controlled with medication.

Cholesterol levels were high in 11 per cent of the women, but more than half of them were unmanaged, while 43 per cent were on medication to lower their cholesterol levels. Similarly, about seven per cent reported as having high blood pressure, with 63 per cent of which were on treatment.

Apart from being healthy and maintaining low rates of blood sugar and so on, having a family history of risk factors that cause heart disease can play a major role in making people more prone to heart disease, said the report.

About 34 per cent of women screened had a family history of heart disease and 50 per cent had diabetes in their family, while only three per cent had a family history of cardiac surgery intervention.

The Go Red for Women campaign had the women take part in a heart health screening drive in June, and the study included a questionnaire as well as testing for the main indicators of heart disease which include smoking, high blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure and BMI.

The data collected is a valuable contribution to medical research specific to women in the Middle East, offering insights into current trends and risk factors, said a statement. MAF partnered with the Ministry of Health in the UAE, the American Heart Association, plus local health organisations across the region to analyse data from a sizeable sample of 4,742 women.

The participating malls were Mall of the Emirates, City Centre Deira and City Centre Mirdif in Dubai, City Centre Ajman, City Centre Fujairah, City Centre Sharjah and My City Centre Al Nasseriya in the Northern Emirates. The regional campaign also extended to City Centres in Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon and Oman.   

Fuad Mansoor Sharaf, senior director - Property Management, Shopping Malls for MAF Properties, said: “Majid Al Futtaim is continually striving to identify areas of innovation across sectors, while it acts in the interest of community well-being; a healthy society is a prosperous one.

“As part of our commitment at Majid Al Futtaim to create great moments for everyone every day, the data collected can be used by the medical community in the Middle East to complement research efforts where data is scarce and costly to gather.” - TradeArabia News Service