By Kwon Mee-yoo
Nearly one fifth of Korean women could be obese in four years from Westernized eating habits such as eating too much fast food, an international market research firm said.
Datamonitor released a report that more Korean and Chinese women will have weight problems in the years to come, forecasting the obesity rate of Korean women at 18.4 percent and Chinese at 5.1 percent by 2014.
They also said Asian women are more likely to be fat than men. Datamonitor analyst Mark Whalley said that obesity is not due to a lack of attention or education.
“About 53 percent of consumers in Asia said their biggest goal in weight control is losing weight and some 30 percent of them are already on a diet,” he said. “The increase of obesity in Asia, especially China and Korea is a threat to people’s health as eating habits are becoming Westernized.”
He said the result was quite shocking as Asians are generally known for their keen interest in healthy food and a balanced diet.
“Tackling obesity is challenging due to an inherent lack of trust as consumers are highly skeptical towards weight loss products and the motives of the industry as a whole,” Whalley said. “Many consumers have tried and failed with weight management regimes and direct this frustration towards the industry. There is a perception that companies are capitalizing on a societal problem for their own gain and that they are more focused on generating revenue than creating products which are genuinely effective.”
In comparison, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said, in its recent obesity rate report 2010, that 4 percent of Korean adults are obese, while 30 percent are overweight.The OECD also expected a 5 percent rise in the ratio of fat people in Korea in the next 10 years.
The organization also pointed out that there was inequality in the corpulence of women in Korea — less educated females have a five times higher possibility of being overweight than those highly educated.
뚱뚱해지는 한국여성 더 많아져
- 2014년 한국 여성 18% 비만
식생활이 서구화되고 패스트 푸드를 즐겨먹음에 따라 4년 후에는 한국 여성 다섯 명 중 한 명이 비만이 될 수도 있다고 한 국제 시장 조사 회사가 밝혔다.
데이터모니터의 조사 결과에 따르면 2014년에는 한국 여성의 18.4%, 중국 여성의 5.1%가 비만이 될 것이라는 전망을 내놓았다.
데이터모니터의 마크 월레이에 따르면 아시아에서 여성이 남성보다 과체중 이상의 문제가 발생하기 쉬우며, 이것은 관심이나 교육이 부족해서 생기는 일이 아니다.
"아시아 여성 중 약 53%가 체중 감량이 그들의 체중 조절에 있어 가장 중요한 목표라고 말하고, 30%는 이미 다이어트를 하고 있다. 특히 식습관이 서구화되면서 한국과 중국에서 과체중과 비만이 건강 문제로 떠오르고 있다."고 월레이는 말했다.
