Prevalence of Weight Problems in Malaysia

Ministry of Health Malaysia conducted a National Health and Morbidity Survey II on 80,000 adult subjects between 1996 and 1997. They found that 4.4% and 16.6% of the population were obese and overweight respectively. Based on the adult population (males and females) aged between 20-59 years old of 10.4 millions (1996 Population Consensus, Statistics Department), it is estimated to be about 450,000 obese and 1.72 million overweight adult Malaysians respectively. The survey also found that 25.2% or 2.62 million adult Malaysians were underweight (based on BMI < 18.5).


Weight Problem - A Major Health Problem

Obesity is linked with increased morbidity, such as diabetes and heart disease, leading to a greater risk of premature death. On the other hand, underweight that is due to protein-energy malnutrition is still highly prevalent amongst Malaysian population. With the increasing prevalence of obesity and high prevalence of underweight, and the huge burden of associated diseases/morbidities, there is a demand for better public education on the management of weight problems.


What and Who is Weight Management Information Centre (WMIC) ?

WMIC is a non-profit association of health professionals who have a special interest in the prevention and treatment of obesity. At this initial stage, a coalition of professional societies involved include the:

• Malaysian Association for the Study of Obesity (MASO)
  
  

• Nutrition Society of Malaysia (NSM)

The members from professional societies forms the Advisory Board of Directors for the WMIC and they are:

• Professor Dr Ismail Noor of MASO
  
  

• Dr Tee E Siong of NSM
  
  

• Dr Khoo Kah Lin

Other resources available at the center include

• Qualified dietitian / nutritionist
  
  

• Qualified physical therapist
  
  

• Community health service

Objective of WMIC

• The purpose of WMIC is to educate the public on the importance of the achievement and maintenance of a healthy body weight through the adoption of increased physical activity, healthy eating and long term treatments for weight management.
  
  

• By clearly defining obesity and underweight as major public health issues, WMIC is conducting a broad-based education initiative to encourage sensible eating, increased physical activity and lifestyle changes for all individuals to improve and achieve weight management.
  
  

• To achieve these objectives, WMIC is committed to providing credible, science-based health messages in a distinctive new way so that people will understand the importance of healthy weight and increased physical activity. A key step is to focus on the health benefits of weight management through dietary management and physical activity programmes.

For more information, please contact: