Shrink project encourages youth to fight obesity

By Zia Khan/Staff ReporterAs a gentle breeze billows across Doha on a lazy winter evening, a dozen Qatari youngsters toil hard inside a gym in what appears to be a labourious grind uncharacteristic of generations born in this nation after oil was discovered.But for this group of teenage boys — most of them overweight and some obese — there is a purpose in sweating by running on treadmills, pedalling bicycles and pushing heavy machines up and down.Drawn from six government secondary schools in the city, they are contestants of a competition to encourage youngsters aged between 15 and 18 , especially the locals, to shed weight and shape up their bodies.The Project Shrink that offers a hefty QR25,000 to the winner is sponsored by the Reach Out To Asia (ROTA), a charity  that works under the umbrella of  Qatar Foundation.As many as 36 youth  are taking part in the competition that stated in November 2012 and would continue through March this year.The winner — the one who loses the most kilos — would be announced in June 2013, said Mumen Mamoun al-Taib, chief operation manager of the project.The project is one of several initiatives by the Qatari government or the semi-official organisations working for the public welfare to prevent what can otherwise be a  healthcare disaster in the country.The overwhelming occurrence of obesity among the indigenous Qatari population has emerged a huge threat to the well-being of youth, exposing them to some diseases like diabetes and hypertension.Qatar, the richest nation on earth, is also the fattest with half of all adults obese and 17% of the population suffering from diabetes.Lack of physical activity and consumption of junk food have been identified as the two most obvious reasons for the youth to gain weight leading to obesity and a host of diseases that follow such people.“Qatar is one of the leading nations when it comes to obesity,” stated Dr Abdulazim Abdul Wahab Hussain, consultant general surgeon and medical director of Al-Ahli Hospital.“It is an endemic problem and also a vicious circle that the prosperity and increase in disposable income has led to high calorie diet and sedentary lifestyle, which, in turn is the main cause of obesity,” he added at a seminar in Doha recently.Codenamed as competition recreate yourself, the Shrink project is aimed at luring youth in Qatar into a more agile and dynamic lifestyle with physical exertion being part of their daily routine, something they are not familiar with, said Mumen.Nan Adrian Dragos, the 35-year-old Romanian trainer at the gym, said obesity in Qatar has touched an alarmingly high level and immediate steps are needed to address the root causes of the problem. “I’ll say a crash programme or some emergency plan is required if Qatar is to have a healthy younger generation,” added Dragos, who has a postgraduate degree in sports pedagogy from Germany.He explained for better results, children from a very early stage of their life should be trained to have a way of living that is helpful in keeping  weight in suitable limits.And the exercise, Dragos stressed, would not work in isolation unless coupled with healthy food habits.“It should be a mix…one thing complements other. If one ingredient is missing, there is no guarantee of favourable results,” advised the trainer, who thinks there is still a long way to go before Qatar could have its kids free of health vulnerabilities.Adrian said that one way to encourage the youth to “use their legs more than their stomachs is for Qatar to build places like parks, playgrounds, jogging tracks, sport courts, gyms and all that involves physical exertion,” he said.Projects like Shrink, Mumen hoped, would definitely prove a milestone in attracting Qatari youths towards a positive lifestyle by making most of their energy to shake themselves.And already change is in the air. “More and more people are coming to us…they love themselves and want their bodies to be in an ideal shape,” said Mervin Gualberto, a 34-year-old trainer from the Philippines, who is serving at the gym for three years now.