Not fast food, but local fare is killing us

Malaysians are the fattest in Asia and the bloated lifestyle is set to continue.

PETALING JAYA: The leading question: Why you so fat one? The usual asnwer: Fast food lah!

For decades, we have been made to believe that fast food is the main culprit for our state of obesity. But dietitians beg to differ.

National Heart Institute chief dietitian Mary Easaw John says many blame fast food as the cause of obesity without realising that local food is the main culprit.

Logically, not everyone can afford to eat fast food daily because it cost a lot more than the local dishes.

Our bloated status has already earned us world recognition.A recent survey by British medical journal The Lancet lists Malaysians as the fattest in Asia .

The survey showed that 45.3% of Malaysians are overweight.

Mary Easaw said the trend was worrying and should not be taken lightly.

“It is more worrying that Malaysians do not realise that obesity can cause diabetes and heart disease.

Obesity is also contributed by our national past time-eating out.

Local food is cheap and easily available everywhere and some mamak restaurants and stalls are open 24 hours a day.

Most Malaysians start their day with a plate of nasi lemak or roti canai and a glass of teh tarik and top it off with sweet kueh offered at most stalls.

Nasi Lemak contains 644 calories, which is equivalent to three bowls of rice, and teh tarik has 83.

The total amount of calories for breakfast is 727 and with two curry puffs (256 calories) the figure can reach 983 just for breakfast, not taking into account the dhal or curry to go with the roti canai.

If you decide to eat roti telur, it contains 414 calories. Usually Malaysians have two roti canai’s for breakfast so you can figure out the calorie intake.

You are better off eating two half-boiled eggs with plain bread which will only have 227 calories.

“Another factor is not eating at the right time. When we miss our meals or have late meals, we tend to over-indulge and this will contribute to weight gain,” said Mary Easaw .

She said there were stalls everywhere, by the roadside, under the trees and below overhead bridges and people were tempted to binge on the local favourites without realising the extra calories they were consuming.

“Malaysia is also rich in culture with many festivals and most of the time food plays an important role in these events. Food and Malaysians are inseparable. We won’t die of starvation but we will die because of obesity,” she added.

Mary Easaw said the government should implement a healthy lifestyle for Malaysians, starting with corporations, government departments and schools.

How to combat this problem

“We should start serving less food at meetings, cutting down on heavy meals and replacing it with more fruits and drinks.

“A sedentary lifestyle without exercise is another factor and for this the government should build more pathways to encourage Malaysians to walk,” she added.

Mary Easaw said Malaysia could learn from Singapore where food stalls were not allowed by the roadside.

“Food chains should offer smaller portions so that Malaysians will not over-indulge and consumers should also be given choices of cooking methods such as steamed, grilled, baked, fried or roast.

“Government can also help hawkers with guidelines of serving healthier food,” she said.

She recommended that the Education Ministry employ dietitians for schools so that they could also monitor the cafeteria and food vendors.

“This system has been implemented in Japan. Dietitians can teach students on the importance of nutrition, conduct weight-loss programmes and reward them with incentives to lead a healthier lifestyle,” she said.

Mary Easaw said obesity should be treated as a disease to make people aware of the dangers it could lead to.