SINGAPORE - Get ready to
trim the fat - the Health Promotion Board (HPB) wants Singaporeans to lose one
million kilograms in total by 2016.
According to a tender
document posted on a government website, the HPB will launch a "One
Million Kg Challenge" as part of its annual National Healthy Lifestyle
campaign later this year.
It wants Singaporean
residents aged 18 to 64 to join the new three-year national weight-loss
initiative to fight rising obesity.
The latest National Health
Survey in 2010 found that one in 10 Singaporean adults, or 10.8 per cent, was
obese, up from 6.9 per cent in 2004.
Even children here have been
packing on the weight, with one in 10 pre-schoolers now seriously overweight.
A person is obese when his
body mass index (BMI) is 30 or higher.
To calculate BMI, divide
your weight in kilograms by the square of your height in metres.
Poor food choices as well as
more Singaporeans having jobs where they sit most of the day were blamed for
the bloat.
As part of the new campaign,
the HPB wants Singaporeans to get up and moving, and also care more about what
goes on their plates.
A spokesman said the agency
will encourage companies, organisations and individuals to support the campaign
over the next few months but did not give more details.
According to the document,
the HPB hopes to kick-start the programme by recruiting 75,000 people here who
will be motivated to lose 3kg each on average over six months.
Some of these will be drawn
from the agency's corporate partners, health institutions and schools, business
parks and Singapore Health Award recipients.
Communities and
constituencies will be roped in from the second year.
But while everyone should
exercise, overweight people may have medical problems that make it necessary
for their exercise to be tailored, said Dr Ben Tan, chief of sports medicine at
Changi General Hospital.
He recommended minimal
impact activities such as swimming, cycling, elliptical trainers, rowing
machines, and brisk walking to get them on their feet.
Singapore's ageing
population is also a concern. "In general, the elderly are prone to
falls... Hence, fall prevention should be a consideration in any exercise
programme for them," he added.
Dr Tan said a rule of thumb
for ramping up physical activities should be 10 per cent a week. "For
example, if you walk 100 minutes this week, try 110 minutes next week."
Nutritionist Liza Rowan, who
owns consultancy Health and Vitality, recommended using chicken stock or water
instead of oil for stir-frying dishes at home.
For elderly people who may
desire sharper-tasting food because their taste buds are weaker, herbs and
spices such as ginger, dried garlic, lemongrass and paprika are healthy
ingredients.
"Prepare crunchy
vegetables as snacks at home and keep the unhealthy potato chips in
hard-to-reach places. Then when you need a snack it'll be easier for you to be
healthy," she said.
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