Obesity in Latin America

Abstract

Obesity in Latin America has become a serious health problem. The highest prevalence in adults is now seen in Mexico (more than 30 %), and in children, it is seen in girls in Uruguay (more than 15 %). Obesity is the driving force for the epidemic of diabetes mellitus which has also extended to Latin America, and the increasing frequency of these two metabolic problems runs in parallel together with the metabolic syndrome. Abdominal obesity has been ill defined in Latin America until recently when the regional cutoffs for waist circumference were set at 94 cm for men and 88–90 cm for women. A high waist-hip ratio is associated with a two- to fourfold increase in the risk of having an acute myocardial infarction. Latin America is going through an accelerated urbanization process, and in some countries in Central America, this may lead to a steep rise in obesity and associated metabolic problems when the transition takes momentum. By the year 2030 overweight and obesity are expected to affect 50 % of males and 60 % of females in Latin America. Its burden reflects in the alarming increase of cases of diabetes, hypertension, CHD, stroke, cancer, and knee osteoarthritis. That could be minimized significantly if the mean BMI was reduced by 1 % and even more with a 5 % reduction and would save billions of US dollars in the next 30–40 years. A systematic review supports school-based interventions to improve lifestyle in children and healthcare interventions among overweight adults in Latin America. Many governments in Latin America are now developing innovative population strategies to reduce the obesity epidemic.