A Seeming Oxymoron: Obesity in Africa

Photo by Jen Wen Luoh

Africa. The word tends to conjure visions of starving children, hips jutting out from their bodies. However, alongside a battle against chronic malnutrition, another killer is on the rise in Africa: obesity. Obesity in Africa may sound contradictory, but with urbanization and the influx of Western fast food companies, the number of obese Africans has begun to rise (Gettleman).

Obesity is the excessive accumulation of fat in the body, potentially leading to health complications (“Nutrition”). As Africa modernizes, it has patterned after its already-urbanized predecessors, slowly mitigating infectious diseases and starvation but now facing an obesity crisis (“Nutrition”). Out of the twenty nations with the sharpest incline in obesity rates, eight are African (Gettleman). Unfortunately, the African healthcare system, established to treat obvious pandemics like starvation, AIDS, and tropical fevers, is ill-equipped to face the noncommunicable diseases of obesity, and Africans are left without access to proper medical care for conditions like heart ailments and diabetes (Gettleman). As medical institutions work to combat obesity, urbanization has taken a heavy toll on Africans.

Firstly, rapid African urbanization has increased the availability of unhealthy, ultra-processed foods. With modernization, incomes have crept up, so more families can afford to put food on the table (Gettleman). For example, one South African study illustrated how its mean household income doubled from 10,741 rand in 1993 to 24,409 rand in 2008 (Leibbrandt). The increase in income and accessibility to food is grand; however, these increased incomes usually only provide enough to afford cheap, ultra-processed foods that cause obesity (Gettleman). Ultra-processed foods tend to contain twice the calories, twice the sodium, and three times the amount of sugars, fattening up individuals sans necessary nutrients such as proteins, vitamins, and minerals (“We’re bulking up”).

Furthermore, the influx of Western fast food companies into African cities exacerbates the obesity epidemic. Fast food chains like Kentucky Fried Chicken and McDonalds, emblematic of a modern society, have established deep roots in African city life (Searcey). With flashy signs and discounted meals tailored to the poor, the fast food of the West aims to make itself a “daily brand” in Africa, according to one KFC store owner (Searcey). Fast food companies are often lauded by African cityfolk due to their refreshing cleanliness, quality, and dependability (Searcey). But, even with all those benefits, fast food as regular sustenance paints a bleak future for African health; even the KFC lunch box meal in Africa “exceeds the daily recommended levels of salt and sugar, and includes trans fatty acids”, all of which, in excess, cause obesity (Searcey). Eaten regularly, obesity could follow.

Finally, African urbanization promotes a sedentary lifestyle, limiting the exercise that counterbalances overnutrition. While, in villages, Africans can eat whatever they wish due to their constant manual labor, the city provides a life of inactivity (Lokuruka). Whether as a grocery bagger in a supermarket or an executive in a highrise, exercise is limited at best during the workday, and automobiles and motorcycles are more commonly used as transportation than walking or biking (Gettleman). The lack of regular exercise means Africans who consume unhealthy foods are at an increased risk for obesity (Lokuruka).

Ultimately, urbanization and fast food companies have greatly contributed to the African obesity epidemic. Advocates have clamored for government regulation of fast food companies and ultra-processed foods along with public awareness of obesity, but change is still to be seen (Searcey). Without it, the spread of obesity and its noncommunicable diseases on the African continent may continue to grow, and, in the future, the vision Africa brings to mind might not be starvation but obesity.

WORKS CITED: Obesity in Africa

Gettleman, Jeffrey. “In Kenya, and Across Africa, an Unexpected Epidemic: Obesity.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 27 Jan. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/01/27/world/africa/kenya-obesity-diabetes.html.

Leibbrandt, Murray, and James Levinsohn. “Fifteen Years On: Household Incomes in South Africa.” Fifteen Years On: Household Incomes in South Africa, citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.893.5033&rep=rep1&type=pdf.

Lokuruka, Michael. "A literature review of role of obesity in adult health with reference to Africa." African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, vol. 13, no. 1, 2013, p. 7088+. Global Issues in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A321179463/GIC?u=los42754&xid=314dcdd9. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

“Nutrition - Knowledge Summary: Women's & Children's Health.” World Health Organization, The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health, 2012, www.who.int/pmnch/topics/part_publications/KS18-high.pdf.

Searcey, Dionne, and Matt Richtel. “Obesity Was Rising as Ghana Embraced Fast Food. Then Came KFC.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 2 Oct. 2017, www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/health/ghana-kfc-obesity.html.

"We're bulking up on ultra-processed foods; Too many products are giving us lots of calories but little nutrition." Spectator [Hamilton, Ontario], 17 Feb. 2018, p. A15. Global Issues in Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A527902979/GIC?u=los42754&xid=3b957c65. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.