LettersCovid-19, obesity and North Korea: a lesson for Hong Kong?

Name: North Korea struggles with drug shortages amid surge in Covid-19 cases
Uploaded: 2022-05-26T03:30:12.000Z
Duration: 1 min 55 s
Description: North Korea struggles with drug shortages amid surge in Covid-19 cases

Readers discuss the link between Covid-19 and metabolic syndrome, the revamp of the Hong Kong government, and LGBTQ rights in South Korea

3-MIN READ3-MIN

A farmer fertilises rice seedlings in fields located along a highway in Pyongyang, North Korea, in 2017. Photo: AP

Letters

Published: 11:30am, 26 May 2022

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I refer to “Obesity is the new hidden pandemic” (May 19). Obesity is not hidden but in full view. However, the food, health and education authorities tend to look the other way.

Your correspondent points out that Covid-19 has taken a serious toll on humanity. One cause of this could be metabolic syndrome, which is a combination of diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.

These conditions are interlinked and are seen as comorbidities with Covid-19. The United States has more than 1 million deaths linked to Covid-19, and at the same time around 50 per cent of American adults have either diabetes or pre-diabetes.

The World Health Organization is concerned about North Korea because its population is unvaccinated against Covid-19. It is difficult to get meaningful statistics from North Korea, but it reports more than 2 million cases, which are thought to be from the Omicron variant, and an official figure of about 70 deaths. Certainly, North Korea does not have an obesity problem. North Koreans have a very simple diet, typically rice and kimchi.

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North Korea struggles with drug shortages amid surge in Covid-19 cases

I am more than 70 years old. In my class of 40 students at junior school, only one was overweight and he was teased mercilessly. Now when I see students leaving the school opposite my flat, many appear overweight and possibly it is the skinny ones who get teased.

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Readers discuss the link between Covid-19 and metabolic syndrome, the revamp of the Hong Kong government, and LGBTQ rights in South Korea

Readers discuss the link between Covid-19 and metabolic syndrome, the revamp of the Hong Kong government, and LGBTQ rights in South Korea