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Johannesburg – Discovery Health Medical Aid’s wellness programme released the results of their ObeCity Index for 2017, based on data collected from their Vitality members.
Since their last ObeCity Index study done in 2014, Cape Town has managed to maintain, and even improve, their efforts toward healthier living.
Six South African cities were involved in the study – Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Bloemfontein.
The various categories cities were scored in are: weight status, food purchasing, fruit and vegetable portions purchased, sugar purchased, and salt purchased.
The results for the six cities are:
Weight status – Cape Town, at number one, means the city has the healthiest weight status.
6th Port Elizabeth
5th Bloemfontein
4th Pretoria
3rd Durban
2nd Johannesburg
1st Cape Town
Food purchases – Cape Town, rated at number one, means the city has the most balanced food purchases.
6th Durban
5th Johannesburg
4th Pretoria
3rd Port Elizabeth
2nd Bloemfontein
1st Cape Town
Fruit and Vegetables – Cape Town, rated at number one, means the city purchases the largest number of fruit and vegetable portions.
6th Durban
5th Port Elizabeth
4th Pretoria
3rd Bloemfontein
2nd Johannesburg
1st Cape Town
Salt – Durban, rated at number one, means the city has the lowest consumption of salt.
6th Johannesburg
5th Cape Town
4th Bloemfontein
3rd Pretoria
2nd Port Elizabeth
1st Durban
Sugar – Durban, rated at number one, means the city has the lowest consumption of sugar.
6th Bloemfontein
5th Cape Town
4th Johannesburg
3rd Pretoria
2nd Port Elizabeth
1st Durban
In his presentation of the data, Dr Craig Nossel, Head of Vitality Wellness, said the country has a great amount of work to do in order to lower the figures of obesity in the country.
According the Global Burden of Disease study for 2016, dietary risk factors and physical inactivity killed just under 12 million people. Hypertension wasn’t far behind, weighing in at just under 10.5 million deaths.
Obesity isn’t something that only affects adults. The number of obese people, whether child or adult, has been increasing over the years. In Nossel’s presentation, obesity statistics for women increased by 14% from 1980 to 2015.
Going forward, Nossel said we need to seriously consider buying better, cooking our own food and stop eating take-aways and convenience foods – fast food consumption has increased drastically in recent times.
Nossel also mentioned that we need to become more physically active, a study the organisation will look into doing over the next few years.
