South Africa needs more than a sugar tax to get to the bottom of obesity
- Nellie Myburgh
South Africa has been wrapped up in public and parliamentary debates on the value of South Africa’s proposed sugar tax.
These highlight that the growing obesity epidemic has been fuelled by people consuming high levels of sugar. 
Obesity shortens a person鈥檚 lifespan and affects their quality of life. It leads to lifestyle diseases that result in among others strokes, blindness, amputations and kidney failure.
Obesity has become a global epidemic with more than worldwide classified as obese. The US leads the pack with a 34% obesity prevalence, followed by Mexico (30%) and New Zealand (about 26%).
In Africa, the World Health Organisation reports that South Africa has the highest obesity levels with 26.8% of people classified as obese. Seychelles has a 26.3% obese population while Botswana follows closely with 22.4%.
In South Africa obesity related lifestyle diseases rival HIV/AIDS and TB in terms of their impact. Research shows that chronic diseases result in one death every hour. About 40% of women and 11% of men suffer from obesity in the country. And 25% of teenage girls in rural South Africa are overweight or obese.
But blaming sugar for obesity neglects the many factors that are at play in this complex health issue.
Global studies show there are several other factors responsible for someone developing obesity. These include , , , and .
South Africa would need to investigate these links as part of its plan to tackle skyrocketing obesity rates.
Genetic factors
Scientists have established a genetic basis for obesity but defining the genetic contribution is still a challenge. Bio-medical research has made some headway.
Global has shown that some populations have a to obesity. For example, studies show that in the US and Europe, some populations are genetically prone to . People who have this condition have fat on their abdomens and chests rather than their arms and legs.
Similarly 鈥 a complex genetic condition where people develop an insatiable appetite, which leads to chronic overeating and obesity 鈥 affects an estimated 1 in 10,000 to 30,000 people worldwide.
But studies into specific conditions in Africa are rare. And more generally, there have been limited genome-wide association studies on African populations.
Technology and lifestyle changes
As the world moves toward an information based economy, adults and children have increased the amount of time they spend on mobile phones, watching TV and on computers or tablets 鈥 taking sedentary lifestyles to a new level.
For children this shift means they have little time for unstructured play or physical activity 鈥 and it directly links to an increase in chronic, non-communicable diseases.
According to a by the Milken Institute in the US, every 10% investment in information and communication technology results in a one percent increase in obesity.
In the US, for example, according to research, children spend between sedentary watching TV, playing video games and engaging with their iPods, tablets, smartphones and social media. As a result, 17% of the paediatric population in the US are obese.
Calorie-dense diets
In addition to technology, have seen massive changes in the past few decades. Energy dense foods have more calories than nutrients. A high intake of empty calorie foods may cause people to gain weight, especially if they take in more calories than they burn.
Many working parents have to make long commutes to work and rely on convenience foods packed with salt, sugar and fat instead of home cooked meals made from fresh ingredients. Many of these products also contain high levels of gluten.
A growing body of research links gluten 鈥 a protein found in grains such as wheat 鈥 with potentially harmful effects on gut health, inflammation, fat regulation, metabolism and fat storage.
In a researchers link gluten to obesity. Researchers the modern way wheat products are processed means they contain amylopectin and gluten additives that are fattening, inflammatory and addictive. These drive obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and dementia.
Sleep deprivation
The prevalence of obesity in the last several decades has been paralleled by a trend of reduced sleep in adults and children.
Worldwide, of people suffer from insomnia. Too little sleep disrupts the normal functioning of our bodies. This includes the hormones that regulate hunger and satiety -鈥 which can result in overeating.
Chronic, even partial sleep loss, including those which regulate hunger and satiety-related hormones such as ghrelin and leptin.
There鈥檚 a close link between how much people sleep and how much they weigh. A group of researchers about 60,000 women for 16 years, asking them about their weight, sleep habits, diet, and other aspects of their lifestyle.
At the start of the study, none of the women were obese. After 16 years, those who slept five hours or less each night had a 15% higher risk of becoming obese compared to women who slept seven hours each night.
spanning five continents have looked at the link between sleep duration and obesity in children. Most of these studies have found a between too little sleep and increased weight.
The psychology around obesity
A carried out on previous childhood sexual trauma studies, which included a total of 112,000 participants has shown that being subjected to abuse during childhood entails a markedly increased risk of developing obesity as an adult.
Such have shown that victims of childhood sexual abuse are far more likely to become obese adults.
And shows that early trauma is so damaging that it can disrupt a person鈥檚 entire psychology and metabolism. This also links to stigma. For example, local researchers found that the stigma attached to HIV/AIDS and weight loss or 鈥渢hinness鈥 could be fuelling the obesity epidemic among some women. have shown that being thin is associated with being HIV positive.
What this adds up to is that if the South African government goes ahead with its plans to implement the sugar tax, it also has a responsibility to fund research into obesity patterns in the country as well as educate consumers and create supportive community environments to assist people to make healthier lifestyle choices.
, Senior researcher at the 杨贵妃传媒 Health Consortium,
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