Latest news with #Ugandans
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Fitness classes help elderly Ugandan women fight rising rates of obesity and diabetes
Fitness classes help elderly Ugandan women fight rising rates of obesity and diabetes JINJA, Uganda (Reuters) -Wearing floor-length dresses and wrap-around skirts, the group of elderly women giggle and tease each other as they jog in pairs, hand in hand, across a playing field in Kivubuka, a village in eastern Uganda. The exercise class is part of a project aimed at reducing increasing rates of noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease and has attracted more than 1,000 people since it began five years ago. While famine and malnutrition remain major concerns in several African countries, obesity is increasingly on the march, especially among Ugandan women. Jane Anonyaalaba, a grandmother, is one of those looking to buck the trend. She used to struggle with high blood pressure, persistent aches and occasional paralysis in her limbs. "I would breathe with difficulty. Climbing a hill was almost impossible," the 70-year-old said. Now, she bends over double to whack three tennis balls with a cricket bat before running between a set of blue plastic wickets. A quarter of a century ago, just 4% of Ugandan women were obese, but that figure had more than doubled to 10.4% by 2019, according to the latest available dataset provided by the Global Nutrition Report, which tracks global nutrition. By comparison, male obesity had risen to just 2.3%. Weekly fitness clubs like Kivubuka may be a model for a local, low-cost approach to supporting aging communities across Africa, where 17% of adult women and 6.8% of men are obese. As people lead more urban, sedentary lifestyles, and eat cheaper ultra-processed foods, the continent is becoming more obese, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Obesity has brought a corollary rise in deaths: around one-third of Ugandans died from NCDs in 2016, almost double the number in 2000. "I want to think and believe that there (has been) a change in their lives," said Isaac Imaka, who organises the club on behalf of the Gabula Royal Foundation, a charity established by a Ugandan traditional leader. "This... is a place where you can come and find a new friend, and just have something to talk about." Solve the daily Crossword
Time of India
3 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Fitness classes help elderly Ugandan women fight rising rates of obesity and diabetes
JINJA, Uganda: Wearing floor-length dresses and wrap-around skirts, the group of elderly women giggle and tease each other as they jog in pairs, hand in hand, across a playing field in Kivubuka, a village in eastern Uganda. The exercise class is part of a project aimed at reducing increasing rates of noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease and has attracted more than 1,000 people since it began five years ago. While famine and malnutrition remain major concerns in several African countries, obesity is increasingly on the march, especially among Ugandan women. Jane Anonyaalaba, a grandmother, is one of those looking to buck the trend. She used to struggle with high blood pressure, persistent aches and occasional paralysis in her limbs. "I would breathe with difficulty. Climbing a hill was almost impossible," the 70-year-old said. Now, she bends over double to whack three tennis balls with a cricket bat before running between a set of blue plastic wickets. A quarter of a century ago, just 4% of Ugandan women were obese, but that figure had more than doubled to 10.4% by 2019, according to the latest available dataset provided by the Global Nutrition Report, which tracks global nutrition. By comparison, male obesity had risen to just 2.3%. Weekly fitness clubs like Kivubuka may be a model for a local, low-cost approach to supporting aging communities across Africa, where 17% of adult women and 6.8% of men are obese. As people lead more urban, sedentary lifestyles, and eat cheaper ultra-processed foods, the continent is becoming more obese, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Obesity has brought a corollary rise in deaths: around one-third of Ugandans died from NCDs in 2016, almost double the number in 2000. "I want to think and believe that there (has been) a change in their lives," said Isaac Imaka, who organises the club on behalf of the Gabula Royal Foundation , a charity established by a Ugandan traditional leader. "This... is a place where you can come and find a new friend, and just have something to talk about."
NBC News
3 days ago
- Health
- NBC News
A genetic test could predict the odds of obesity, allowing for early interventions
A genetic test may one day predict a child's risk of obesity in adulthood, paving the way for early interventions. Certain genetic variants can affect how a person's body stores fat or make them more prone to overeating. Genetic variation can also predict how well a person will respond to different weight loss drugs. In a study published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine, more than 600 researchers from around the world worked together to compile genetic data from more than 5 million people — the largest and most diverse genetic dataset to date. They also used genetic data from 23andMe. From the dataset, the researchers were able to create what's known as a polygenic risk score, which takes into account which genetic variants a person has that have been linked to a higher BMI in adulthood. The score, the researchers said, could be used to predict a person's risk of obesity as an adult — before they even turn 5. 'Childhood is the best time to intervene,' said study co-author Ruth Loos, a professor at the University of Copenhagen's Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research. (Research conducted at the center is not influenced by drugmaker Novo Nordisk, though some of the study authors had ties to pharmaceutical companies that make weight loss drugs.) The findings come as obesity is rising around the world. Rates of obesity in adults have more than doubled globally since 1990, and adolescent rates have quadrupled, according to the World Health Organization. About 16% of adults worldwide have obesity and the situation is worse in the United States, where more than 40% of adults have obesity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics show. Twice as effective The new test is not the first that predicts a person's risk of obesity, but Loos and her team showed it was about twice as effective as the method doctors currently use to assess their patients. That polygenetic score can account for about 8.5% of a person's risk for having a high BMI as an adult. The new score increased that to about 17.6%, at least in people with European ancestry. 'That's a pretty powerful risk indicator for obesity, but it still leaves open a lot that is unknown,' said Dr. Roy Kim, a pediatric endocrinologist at Cleveland Clinic Children's who was not involved with the research. Based on this score, more than 80% of a person's risk for obesity can be explained by other factors, such as where they live, what kinds of foods they have access to, and how much they exercise. The test was not nearly as effective in predicting obesity risk in non-Europeans. It explained about 16% of the risk for having a high BMI in East Asian Americans, but just 2.2% in rural Ugandans. About 70% of people whose data was included in the study were of predominantly European ancestry. About 14% were Hispanic and typically had a mix of ancestries. About 8% were of predominantly East Asian descent and just under 5% were of predominantly African ancestry. These samples were predominantly from African American people, who largely had mixed ancestry. Just 1.5% were of predominantly South Asian ancestry. Loos said the new score is a big step forward, but that it's still a prototype. The next step is to collect more — and more diverse — data on people with African ancestry in particular to improve how well the score works for everyone, not just white people. She said the score could offer one indicator — what high blood pressure is to heart disease, for example — that could help predict a person's risk of developing obesity. 'Obesity is not only about genetics, so genetics alone can never accurately predict obesity,' Loos said. 'For the general obesity that we see all over the world, we need other factors such as lifestyle that need to be part of the predictions.' Genetics play a bigger role in severe obesity, meaning a BMI of more than 40, she added. Still, identifying a person's genetic risk early on in childhood and intervening early with lifestyle coaching could make a big difference, she said. Research has shown that about 55% of children with obesity go on to have obesity in adolescence, and that about 80% of those individuals will have obesity in adulthood. 'Behavioral things are really important,' Kim said. 'Their environment, their access to healthy food, exercise opportunities, even their knowledge about healthy foods all affect a person's obesity risk.' How important are genetics, really? Although studies in identical twins have found that genetics can account for as much as 80% of the reason a person has obesity, lifestyle factors still play a huge role, Kim said. 'Even with the same genetic makeup, people can have different body types,' he said. 'From a very young age in my practice, we educate patients about the importance of eating protein-rich foods, a lot of fruits and vegetables and not too many refined carbs.' Dr. Juliana Simonetti, co-director of the Comprehensive Weight Management Program at the University of Utah, has been using genetic testing in her adult patients for about five years. She said understanding a person's genes can help doctors better treat weight gain. 'Obesity is not homogeneous. We have different kinds and different presentations,' said Simonetti, who wasn't involved with the new study. Simonetti uses a person's genes to determine if a patient struggles with satiety, or feeling full. 'They eat but do not feel full,' Simonetti said, adding that this is a disorder caused by genetic mutations affecting certain pathways in the body. People who have these mutations 'tend to have higher weight,' she said. But such mutations do not tell the whole genetic story of obesity, Simonetti said. The genes that a person inherits from either parent, even if they are not mutations, also determine how a person's body stores weight or uses energy. Both can play a big role in obesity risk. Genetic testing is also starting to be able to determine how well certain weight loss drugs will work for a person, Simonetti said, but she added this is just the beginning. 'We are talking about three out of 80 mutations that we can treat,' she said. 'We are getting better, and the more data we have, I'm hopeful that we are going to do a better job in being more precise in understanding treatment responses.'
The Star
4 days ago
- Health
- The Star
Fitness classes help elderly Ugandan women fight rising rates of obesity and diabetes
JINJA, Uganda (Reuters) -Wearing floor-length dresses and wrap-around skirts, the group of elderly women giggle and tease each other as they jog in pairs, hand in hand, across a playing field in Kivubuka, a village in eastern Uganda. The exercise class is part of a project aimed at reducing increasing rates of noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease and has attracted more than 1,000 people since it began five years ago. While famine and malnutrition remain major concerns in several African countries, obesity is increasingly on the march, especially among Ugandan women. Jane Anonyaalaba, a grandmother, is one of those looking to buck the trend. She used to struggle with high blood pressure, persistent aches and occasional paralysis in her limbs. "I would breathe with difficulty. Climbing a hill was almost impossible," the 70-year-old said. Now, she bends over double to whack three tennis balls with a cricket bat before running between a set of blue plastic wickets. A quarter of a century ago, just 4% of Ugandan women were obese, but that figure had more than doubled to 10.4% by 2019, according to the latest available dataset provided by the Global Nutrition Report, which tracks global nutrition. Weekly fitness clubs like Kivubuka may be a model for a local, low-cost approach to supporting aging communities across Africa, where 17% of adult women and 6.8% of men are obese. As people lead more urban, sedentary lifestyles, and eat cheaper ultra-processed foods, the continent is becoming more obese, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Obesity has brought a corollary rise in deaths: around one-third of Ugandans died from NCDs in 2016, almost double the number in 2000. "I want to think and believe that there (has been) a change in their lives," said Isaac Imaka, who organises the club on behalf of the Gabula Royal Foundation, a charity established by a Ugandan traditional leader. "This... is a place where you can come and find a new friend, and just have something to talk about." (Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Hereward Holland and Alexandra Hudson)
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Health
- Straits Times
Fitness classes help elderly Ugandan women fight rising rates of obesity and diabetes
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: Fitness coach Aaron Kusasira guides elderly women as they take part in community-led fitness drills session that combines yoga, aerobics, and cricket drills to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs), on a playing field in Kivubuka village, in Jinja District, Eastern Uganda, July 12, 2025. REUTERS/Abubaker Lubowa/File Photo JINJA, Uganda - Wearing floor-length dresses and wrap-around skirts, the group of elderly women giggle and tease each other as they jog in pairs, hand in hand, across a playing field in Kivubuka, a village in eastern Uganda. The exercise class is part of a project aimed at reducing increasing rates of noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease and has attracted more than 1,000 people since it began five years ago. While famine and malnutrition remain major concerns in several African countries, obesity is increasingly on the march, especially among Ugandan women. Jane Anonyaalaba, a grandmother, is one of those looking to buck the trend. She used to struggle with high blood pressure, persistent aches and occasional paralysis in her limbs. "I would breathe with difficulty. Climbing a hill was almost impossible," the 70-year-old said. Now, she bends over double to whack three tennis balls with a cricket bat before running between a set of blue plastic wickets. A quarter of a century ago, just 4% of Ugandan women were obese, but that figure had more than doubled to 10.4% by 2019, according to the latest available dataset provided by the Global Nutrition Report, which tracks global nutrition. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 2 workers stranded on gondola dangling outside Raffles City Tower rescued by SCDF Asia Japan PM Ishiba apologises to his party for election loss, vows to stay in office to deal with US tariff talks Business $1.1 billion allocated to three fund managers to boost Singapore stock market: MAS Singapore Proof & Company Spirits closes Singapore distribution business Life Travel Journal: Safari tourism with a side of moral crisis Singapore Mandai Wildlife Group group CEO Mike Barclay to retire; Bennett Neo named as successor Singapore Jail, caning for man who held metal rod to cashier's neck in failed robbery attempt Singapore Fresh charge for woman who harassed nurse during pandemic, created ruckus at lion dance competition By comparison, male obesity had risen to just 2.3%. Weekly fitness clubs like Kivubuka may be a model for a local, low-cost approach to supporting aging communities across Africa, where 17% of adult women and 6.8% of men are obese. As people lead more urban, sedentary lifestyles, and eat cheaper ultra-processed foods, the continent is becoming more obese, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Obesity has brought a corollary rise in deaths: around one-third of Ugandans died from NCDs in 2016, almost double the number in 2000. "I want to think and believe that there (has been) a change in their lives," said Isaac Imaka, who organises the club on behalf of the Gabula Royal Foundation, a charity established by a Ugandan traditional leader. "This... is a place where you can come and find a new friend, and just have something to talk about." REUTERS
