ANKARA, May 4 (Xinhua) -- One third of Turks are suffering from obesity, a rate that puts Turkey in the world top 10 for the health condition despite more measures taken against the already defined "epidemic".
The native traditional Mediterranean diet in Turkey is now increasingly overwhelmed by the fast-food craze in big cities, affecting especially children, who fall victim to the lure of this dreaded and unhealthy cuisine bursting with saturated fat and sugar.
Obesity, some 30 years ago, was a very foreign even unknown term in the Turkish vocabulary when Turkey was fighting against malnutrition among children in rural areas.
But nowadays, there are more than 16 million obese adults in Turkey among some 55 million adults, or 29.5 percent of the total population, according to the obesity update of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in 2017.
The report also shows that the obesity rate is higher among women than men in Turkey.
Since 2013, Turkey has been engaged in a serious battle against obesity and implemented the health promotion campaigns "Move for Health" and "Reducing Portion Sizes."
Moreover, Turkey has launched the "Promoting Physical Activity Project" with 275,000 bicycles distributed to schools, universities, municipalities and NGOs.
But still, some 20.5 percent of men and 41 percent of women in Turkey are facing obesity challenge, according to the Health Ministry's National Nutrition and Health Survey.
According to the survey, obesity is mostly prevalent in the country's eastern Black Sea region, where 33.1 percent of locals weigh as clinically obese and overweight.
Statistics from the European Union are also not promising and even alarming with Eurostat figures showing that 56.7 percent of women in Turkey are overweight, making the country among the worst European countries in terms of the proportion of overweight and obese women right behind Britain.
Turkish Society of Cardiology head Professor Mahmut Sahin suggested recently during a symposium that obesity is an "epidemic" in Turkey and should be treated, calling on the entire population to take adequate measures.
According to the European Cardiovascular Disease Statistics, Turkey ranks the 15th in number of obese men and the 1st in number of obese women out of 56 member countries of the European Society of Cardiology.
"The high rate of coronary heart disease in Turkey is related to the fact that sedentary lifestyles, obesity, high levels of blood fat and high blood pressure are frequently seen in women in Turkey," said the doctor, pointing out that obesity is also the cause for diabetes, some forms of cancers and heart related problems, very costly for the country's social security system.
"The amount of calories eaten increases while energy consumption decreases due to the sedentary lifestyles. In other words, our lifestyle produces diseases," Sahin added.
One crucial factor to blame is the fast-food notion introduced in Turkey some 25 years ago with American franchise restaurants popping up like mushrooms across Turkish towns, impacting the traditional and healthy casserole dishes of the middle and upscale levels of the society.
Having a proper diet and regular exercise is a natural way of losing weight, but there are also surgical methods for those who are at an imminent risk of serious diseases.
Huseyin had a gastric bypass operation eight months ago in Istanbul. He is now trying hard to stick to a strict diet which is not easy when he used to have up to 10 soft drinks a day and snacks when he felt depressed.
"I had a sedentary life, that's for sure, I didn't bother to exercise because there are many overweight people in my family and my situation at first was not special than theirs," said this 30-year-old man.
He explained that his weight ballooned in the last four years and reached nearly 150 kg.
"I tried dieting but was frankly unsuccessful and then I was introduced to gastric bypass process by my doctors and had the operation last year after I lost some initial weight," he said, adding "this surgical procedure is not as easy as what it's claimed to be on TV."
"It was hard at first because it needs a change of your lifestyle, but since then I lost more than 35 kg and I am now much more mobile than before, it's like I have found once again the joy of living," he said.
The government's fight against obesity is painstakingly giving results as a report published last year by the Turkish Statistical Institute suggests.
Compared with 2014, the prevalence of obesity slightly decreased to 19.4 percent from 19.6 percent in adults living in Turkey, leaving much room for improvement.
Last year, Turkey's top television watchdog, the Radio and Television Supreme Council, has imposed commercial limitations during children's TV programs on junk food ads, with the aim to promote healthier eating habits.
On the other hand, ads for healthy foods such as eggs, fruits, legumes, vegetables, milk and yoghurt are largely promoted.
"It's very difficult to resist to a child who sees chips and sugar-laden drinks during his favorite TV show. Now these products are prohibited by the state. I am all for it," said Aysenur Golek, a homemaker from Ankara.
"When my kid doesn't see the unhealthy product, like a fizzy drink, he has less and less cravings for it. It then becomes easier for parents to lure him to a more healthy diet," she said, adding that schools especially in big cities, such as capital Ankara, have taken the initiative not to sell fast or junk food in canteens.
