Hospitals in Shanghai have opened outpatient departments to treat the increasing number of obese patients.
Today, with more than 1.4 billion people, China faces a growing obesity challenge. The National Health Commission (NHC) said that over half of adults are overweight or obese. It warned that if left unchecked, the rate could climb to 70.5 percent by 2030.
At a recent news conference, Lei Haichao, head of the NHC, announced plans to establish more weight management clinics at medical and health facilities, helping people shed pounds safely and pivot to healthier lifestyles.
As one of China's megacities, Shanghai has started to address the pressing health issue by setting up outpatient departments specifically for obesity.
Mrs. Zhao has been suffering from postpartum obesity for a long time. On Wednesday, she met with experts from departments of nutrition, endocrinology, gastroenterology and general surgery from Huadong Hospital at the same time who provided customized treatment plans for her.
"I think we can consider prescribing some medicine. However, it's not necessary to always take them while having improved diet," said Lu Bin, director of Huadong Hospital's endocrinology department.
The launch of obesity treatment has drawn more and more patients to seek for professional medical help.
Among the obesity cases, over 50 percent are young people.
Ms. Chen is one of them. She used to weigh as heavy as 100 kilograms. After several treatments, her weight has now dropped to 80 kilograms.
"On the one hand, doctors will help me lose weight in a healthier way; while on the other hand, I will suffer less. These doctors have treated a lot of patients. Therefore, they can provide suggestions that suit me according to his previous experiences. I can receive much more information this way," she said.
In the past, there weren't many ways to lose weight. Patients mainly tried to lose weight by doing exercises.
However, in recent years, many new drugs and forms of surgeries have become quite useful in tackling obesity. With these measures, not only can hospitals provide more treatment alternatives, but patients are also more confident in achieving their weight loss goal.
"We have outpatient services seven days a week. For now, the number of patients is about 800 to 1,000 per month, and the annual figure could reach 10,000 to 12,000. It's likely that there would be more cases," said Qu Shen, director of Shanghai Tenth People's Hospital’s obesity treatment center.
Hospitals in Shanghai provide outpatient services for obese patients
