DUBAI // You are what you eat – that is the message being delivered to hundreds of overweight children sent on tough boot camps this summer.
Three-week residential camps at the Etisalat Academy began this month, and will run until September, with dieticians and lifestyle coaches given the responsibility of changing the way young people view food.
The initiative is part of the push to help eradicate obesity in the region by getting the message across at an early age.
Data published by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in 2013 showed that more than three quarters of the countries in the Mena region had overweight and obesity rates of more than 50 per cent among men and women, with 79 million obese people living in the region.
Boot camp founder and education consultant Basel Shouly, 41, has conquered his own weight problems, losing 75 kilograms, and said teaching healthy behaviour to children was essential, because change becomes more difficult with age.
“We want them to create good habits and understand what they are eating,” he said. “It is about them finding out what is going into their bodies and reacting to that. If they eat a lot for breakfast, they should eat less for lunch.
“We are watching what they eat all the time and encourage them to make healthy choices for themselves.”
The Centre for Strategic Healthcare Development in Dubai said a survey in Arab countries of 4,000 schoolchildren between the ages of 6 and 16 found that 25 per cent of them were overweight or obese.
At Etisalat’s training academy in Al Muhaisnah 2, about 120 children from across the region will take part in each three-week boot camp.
Organisers are keen to get more from the UAE involved because they are a minority among attendees in the programme, which was started in 2010.
The youngsters’ days start at 6am with a brisk 45-minute walk and healthy breakfast, before a visit to a dietician to monitor their progress.
They then take part in health science lessons and another academic subject of their choice, such as maths or English.
Children are encouraged to keep a food diary during their stay to get an idea of how much food they are consuming, take 10,000 daily steps and take part in fun sports and activities, such as football, badminton, volleyball and swimming.
“We are trying to create an environment that will teach the kids that even though they may be overweight or obese, they are not different,” said Mr Shouly, who insisted the camps are fun and said the children’s efforts during the day were rewarded in the evening with supervised trips to the cinema or shopping mall.
Fun they may be but they also have a serious message and that is what Rita Martins, from Portugal, is determined to get across.
“I don’t want the children to focus on the aesthetics but on the medical conditions associated with being overweight,” said the dietician from Belhoul Specialty Hospital in Deira, who has been involved with the programme since 2012. “Then I try to teach them how they can start the process by eating better and having regular exercise.
“Most of the children are curious about the calories they eat, particularly in fast food. They are shocked when they find out a milkshake has 700 calories in it.”
Jameel Ahmed, 16, from Saudi Arabia, who is studying health science and English at the camp, said: “Many people tease me about my weight, so I want to change. I want to lose weight but learn about food too, as we don’t get taught about it at school.”
Salman Al Harthi, 12, also from Saudi Arabia, said three weeks was a long time to be away from his family. “It is tough but I want to learn English and lose some weight. I am excited about changing the way I look,” he said.
“I eat three times a day but I must change what I eat.”
nwebster@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Pari
Produced by: Clean Slate Films (Anushka Sharma, Karnesh Sharma) & KriArj Entertainment
Director: Prosit Roy
Starring: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani
Three stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio
Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village
What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft
Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans
Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface
Day 1 results:
Open Men (bonus points in brackets)
New Zealand 125 (1) beat UAE 111 (3)
India 111 (4) beat Singapore 75 (0)
South Africa 66 (2) beat Sri Lanka 57 (2)
Australia 126 (4) beat Malaysia -16 (0)
Open Women
New Zealand 64 (2) beat South Africa 57 (2)
England 69 (3) beat UAE 63 (1)
Australia 124 (4) beat UAE 23 (0)
New Zealand 74 (2) beat England 55 (2)
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
%3Cp%3EGoogle%20wasn't%20new%20to%20busting%20out%20April%20Fool's%20jokes%3A%20before%20the%20Gmail%20%22prank%22%2C%20it%20tricked%20users%20with%20%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Farchive.google%2Fmentalplex%2F%22%20target%3D%22_blank%22%3Emind-reading%20MentalPlex%20responses%3C%2Fa%3E%20and%20said%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Farchive.google%2Fpigeonrank%2F%22%20target%3D%22_blank%22%3E%20well-fed%20pigeons%20were%20running%20its%20search%20engine%20operations%3C%2Fa%3E%20.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%20subsequent%20years%2C%20they%20announced%20home%20internet%20services%20through%20your%20toilet%20with%20its%20%22%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Farchive.google%2Ftisp%2Finstall.html%22%20target%3D%22_blank%22%3Epatented%20GFlush%20system%3C%2Fa%3E%22%2C%20made%20us%20believe%20the%20Moon's%20surface%20was%20made%20of%20cheese%20and%20unveiled%20a%20dating%20service%20in%20which%20they%20called%20founders%20Sergey%20Brin%20and%20Larry%20Page%20%22%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Farchive.google%2Fromance%2Fpress.html%22%20target%3D%22_blank%22%3EStanford%20PhD%20wannabes%3C%2Fa%3E%20%22.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EBut%20Gmail%20was%20all%20too%20real%2C%20purportedly%20inspired%20by%20one%20%E2%80%93%20a%20single%20%E2%80%93%20Google%20user%20complaining%20about%20the%20%22poor%20quality%20of%20existing%20email%20services%22%20and%20born%20%22%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fgooglepress.blogspot.com%2F2004%2F04%2Fgoogle-gets-message-launches-gmail.html%22%20target%3D%22_blank%22%3Emillions%20of%20M%26amp%3BMs%20later%3C%2Fa%3E%22.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Types of fraud
Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
* Nada El Sawy
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
EXPATS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Lulu%20Wang%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nicole%20Kidman%2C%20Sarayu%20Blue%2C%20Ji-young%20Yoo%2C%20Brian%20Tee%2C%20Jack%20Huston%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
