Three million, six hundred thousand women aged between 15-49, representing 50 percent of women in that age bracket are obese and overweight, according to the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey Report 2022.
This health challenge has been attributed to poor eating habits and improper lifestyle.
From exercising to product use and dieting schemes, many are resorting to numerous methods of weight loss and keeping fit.
However, the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey, which interviewed over 16,000 women and 7,000 men says 3 million Ghanaian women aged 15-49 continue to remain obese.
In our part of the world, where a fat or plump person is considered healthy, this might be contrary to the WHO’s standards.
The World Health Organization defines Overweight and Obesity as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health, and for many, there are varied opinions on this.
The 3 main drivers of increasing obesity among women are lifestyle, poor eating habits including (excessive consumption of chocolate, ice cream, and fried foods) and other societal pressures.
Government statistician, Professor Kobina Anim, indicated, “We realized that 50% of women in Ghana aged 15-49, are obese, specifically with 22% overweight and 28% obese. We want to promote public health awareness and ensure our efforts are collaborated to strengthen our health systems” he added.
Presenting the findings of the report at the launch in Accra, on January 18, Professor Anim was optimistic that the findings will provide a roadmap for policy makers.
The Ghana Health and Demographic Survey 2022, is a national representation of indicators relevant for the Sustainable Development Goals and intended for use by programme managers and policymakers to evaluate and improve existing programmes.
The 2022 edition is the 7th Demographic and Health Survey conducted in Ghana since its inception 1988.