The Swiss Obesity Alliance wants to classify obesity as a disease in the revision of the national strategy on “non-communicable diseases”. This is one of a series of recommendations from the organisation on the occasion of World Obesity Day.
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L’alleanza svizzera chiede che l’obesità sia riconosciuta come malattia
In Switzerland, 12% of men and 10% of women are considered obese. This proportion doubled from 1992 to 2017. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), this is expected to reach 16% for both men and women by 2030, reports the Swiss Obesity Alliance on Saturday.
“Political action is essential,” says Doris Fischer-Taeschler, president of the Alliance. This starts by considering obesity as “a disease in its own right,” she added. The group argues a paradigm shift in how obesity is viewed will ensure that targeted measures are in place to prevent and reduce obesity.
The WHO has classified obesity as a chronic disease since 1997 and the American Medical Association official recognised obesity as a disease in 2013. In Switzerland, however, obesity is only included as a risk factor for non-communicable diseases in the national non-communicable diseases health strategy 2021-2024.
The alliance also used the day to call attention to the stigmatisation of people suffering from obesity. “Stigmatisation is widespread in Switzerland,” and many of those affected “suffer from depression, which can lead to suicidal thoughts,” writes the alliance in a press statementExternal link. There is currently a fundamental lack of understanding of the severity and complexity of the disease.
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