Officials said that the sharp uptick in overweightness is due to the high cost of medications, inadequate health services in the country\u2019s peripheral regions and in low-income areas, and the lack of linguistically and culturally accessible educational materials on obesity prevention and treatment.<\/p>\n
\t According to the World Health Organization, in 2022, one in eight people in the world were living with obesity. Worldwide adult obesity has more than doubled since 1990, and adolescent obesity has quadrupled.<\/p>\n A 2022 Health Ministry survey<\/a> found that the rate of obesity and excess weight in Israel is high compared to the rest of the world.<\/p>\n Being overweight or obese increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, type 2 diabetes, and various cancers.<\/p>\n Sugar tax<\/p>\n Prof. Aron Troen of Hebrew University addressed the committee on Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich\u2019s cancellation<\/a> of the sugar tax in February 2023, which the previous government had introduced as part of a drive to reduce the consumption of unhealthy beverages.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was already evidence that the experiment was working, a reduction of 10-22% in consumption,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Maccabi Health Fund \u201csees obesity treatment and prevention as a strategic goal,\u201d said Limor Tal Poni, a dietitian at Maccabi, saying that the fund is investing \u201csignificant resources in both treatment and prevention.\u201d<\/p>\n She said that Maccabi has established eight clinics for treating obesity in adults, two specialized clinics for adolescents, 20 clinics for children, and face-to-face and online workshops.<\/p>\n \t Meanwhile, the chairman of the Patients\u2019 Rights Association, Shmulik Ben Yaakov, warned that \u201cobesity deepens social gaps in Israel, and economic and bureaucratic barriers prevent residents of the periphery from receiving basic treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n He argued that obesity \u201cis not a matter of personal choice but a recognized chronic disease,\u201d and said that the high costs of drug treatments along with the shortage of multidisciplinary clinics for treating obesity in the periphery \u201cmake it difficult for many patients to receive medical treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n Ben Yaakov said the association urged the government to adopt a multi-year national plan to examine financing medicines within the framework of the national health basket, a move he said would \u201creduce inequality\u201d and ensure equal medical treatment for every citizen with obesity.<\/p>\n Launching public awareness campaigns<\/p>\n Officials called on the Health Ministry to work on making information about obesity prevention more accessible, to launch a public awareness campaign about the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and to promote legislation that will limit the advertising of harmful foods.<\/p>\n In addition, the committee called on the ministry to incentivize health maintenance organizations to open additional clinics for treating obesity in the periphery. It also called on the Health Ministry and the Finance Ministry to promote additional measures such as taxing harmful food products while subsidizing healthy food.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is impossible to talk about equality when health depends on the level of income or the place of residence,\u201d the Knesset Health Committee\u2019s Melaku said.<\/p>\n
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