Expert Encourages Exercise To Help Beat Obesity

Abu Dhabi, UAE May 2014: Regular exercise is one simple solution to encouraging healthy economies and lowering obesity rates, according to Imperial College London Diabetes Centre’s (ICLDC) Medical Director, Professor Karim Meeran.

Professor Meeran was speaking recently at ICLDC’s newly-launched Diabetes Weekend Intensive Course, which offers medical practitioners an essential overview of diabetes from diagnosis to management. The event sparked conversations around the latest figures from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), which suggest that 382 million people worldwide are living with diabetes.

The two-day weekend event is one of the latest additions to ICLDC's growing Education Series portfolio comprising more than 20 events per year for the local and regional medical community.

Meeran explained to a 200-strong audience about the important role of exercise in helping to lower obesity rates and help prevent the onset of, and manage, diabetes.

“Countries around the world need to do more to up-the-volume on the healthy lifestyle conversation, so that together, we can work towards becoming healthier nations. It is encouraging to see so many physicians from the region coming together in Abu Dhabi to just that.”

Meeran is also Professor of Endocrinology at Imperial College London. 

“Our genes have evolved over thousands of years to help arm early human populations to survive periods of famine through the storage of fat and the slow release of its energy.”

“However, in modern day, this genetic ability can work against us if not managed through proper diet and exercise, and can lead to obesity and diabetes. We all have the ability to protect ourselves and those we care for by striving to maintain a normal body weight by simply adopting a balanced diet and a regular exercise practice.”

Another new ICLDC Education Event, Cardiovascular Update, was also held over the same weekend.

The half-day intensive shared the very latest developments in cardiology, with a special emphasis on case studies and practice guidelines.

The two events were attended by over 200 healthcare professionals from the UAE and Pakistan.