Bo-eun leads the digital content team. She has covered foreign affairs, North Korea, tech, economy and gender issues at The Korea Times. She did a short stint at the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong, where she obtained a new perspective on news production and life. Small sources of joy for her are lounging in the sun, having a good latte and swimming.
One in four Seoulites overweight
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/ Korea Times file
By Kim Bo-eun
The residents of Seoul are among the most weight-conscious people in the world, but data shows one in four is overweight.
According to The Seoul Institute, citizens with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25 and above constitute 23.9 percent of the surveyed population.
A BMI of below 18.5 is considered underweight, 18.5 to 23 is the normal range. If people are between 23 to 25 they are in danger of becoming overweight, 25 to 30 means such individuals are overweight and those over 30 are obese.
Among those in the overweight and obese categories, men in their 30s constitute 37.8 percent, men in their 40s 37.2 percent, women in their 60s 29 percent and women in their 70s 26.6 percent.
However, 39.1 percent of the surveyed residents consider themselves to be overweight. This has risen from 30 percent in 2008 and has remained close to this figure since 2011.
The percentage of underweight people is highest among women in their 20s, followed by women in their 30s.
Meanwhile, 61.9 percent said they had attempted to lose or maintain their current weight in the past year. Also, slightly more than half (55.2 percent) said they walk for at least 30 minutes every day.