UAE Health Minister inaugurates 2nd Family Health Festival

The 2nd edition of Family Health Festival was formally inaugurated by HE Hanif Hassan Ali, Health Minister of the UAE, at Dubai Festival City. The festival, conceived with an aim to generate health awareness amongst the residents, is held in conjunction with Dubai Shopping Festival at select participating malls. This year the event tackles obesity as its central theme through demonstrations, educational initiatives, counseling and health check-ups.
“UAE is facing a major challenge with increasing incidence of obesity. We rank among the top twenty fattest nations globally. Obesity leads to several other life threatening complications. Such initiatives represent a step in the right direction; they combine generating awareness amongst the residents about pressing health issues, with entertaining activities. We hope to be able to reach the message of health lifestyle to the visitors at these malls, said Nasser Khalifa Al –Budoor, Director of HE Minister’s office, UAE Ministry of Health.
Ibrahim Saleh, Coordinator General, Dubai Events & Promotions Establishment, commented: “Apart from being a leading festival in the region that offers the best of Shopping, winning and Entertainment, DSF has always been an ideal platform for innovative initiatives that adds value to the community and raises awareness on important issues. Family Health Festival has all the elements that we look for when supporting any event under our calendar and we hope that it would achieve its aims and objectives.”
Joining the campaign against obesity is the SAFE AT HEART initiative which is being rolled out in the region to generate awareness about bad cholesterol and its ill-effects. The campaign is a joint effort between AstraZeneca, a leading pharmaceutical company and the Emirates Cardiac Society.
“Lifestyle diseases such as heart conditions and diabetes are having a high impact on peoples’ way of life in the region. High cholesterol is one key factor leading to increased risk for heart diseases and stroke. In fact, heart diseases on their own are a leading cause of mortality in the UAE but these diseases can be prevented through lifestyle changes and complying with medical treatment,” said Tarek Rabah, President, AstraZeneca Gulf.
“Myths about cholesterol abound, people are not aware of the perils of increased levels and often do not go for regular tests. More than 50% of the population have abnormal cholesterol levels, its alarming indeed! Through the Safe at Heart campaign, we aim to generate an understanding amongst, and educate residents about keeping a close watch on the cholesterol levels,” he informed further.
Safe At Heart campaign was unveiled last year in November and will conduct a   Middle East wide study “CEPHEUS” as part of its mandate to raise the bar on cholesterol awareness. It is a major study of its kind, aiming to determine the level of cholesterol control in patients in the region. It becomes even more relevant given the fact that nearly one third of the adult and one quarter of the children population is obese. 
“Public education campaigns are a very powerful medium to reach out to the public health information that they can use. Green Crescent with its philosophy of putting ‘Your Health First’ is committed to joining campaigns such as these to educate people about various health conditions. Obesity is on the rise given the lifestyle patterns; it is also at the root of several life threatening conditions. It is important to tackle this issue aggressively,” said Carl J Sardegna, CEO of Green Crescent Insurance Company.
The month long event will unfold a series of workshops, entertainment activities in the backdrop of on-going free health check-ups and counseling by medical experts. Health check-ups will be provided by Lifeline Hospital and Jebel Ali Hospital while a host of fitness experts and nutritionist will be present at the specially designed stands.
“We strive to bring various arms of the community together to address pressing health issues through creatively designed concepts. It gives a tremendous sense of accomplishment when they are well received. Last year we had welcomed 100,000 people at our kiosk, we hope to increase the numbers this time,” said Dr. Prem Jagyasi, CEO and MD of ExHealth.
The participating malls listed so far are, Dubai Festival City and Dubai Outlet Mall in week one; Wafi City and Arabian center in week two; Lamcy Plaza in week three and Al Ghurair Center in week four. The four weeks of the DSF will be spliced under a common theme and yet individually address a specific aspect of obesity. This will be done to maximize the outreach yet keep the mundane away.
A CUT-THAT-FAT challenge will also take place from second week as weight loss program under the supervision from nutritionists and fitness experts for public. A unique program, the challenge has been developed to address an urgent need to address the growing incidence of obesity in UAE.