Society – Hanover – Experts for better care for people with obesity – Society
Hanover (dpa) – Around 17 million people in Germany are severely overweight – and during the corona pandemic, according to initial findings, the number has increased. Those affected often receive help too late and not enough, criticize experts and self-help groups. “Obesity therapy is chronically underfunded in Germany,” said the President of the German Obesity Society, Jens Aberle, to the German Press Agency.
Whether, for example, costs for nutritional advice or exercise therapy are covered depends on the individual approval of the health insurance company. “Other therapy options such as drug treatment are generally not reimbursed,” complained the medical director at the Obesity Center of the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE). Obesity is a chronic disease and not a lifestyle choice, Aberle emphasized. Professional help is necessary.
“People with obesity are underserved in Germany,” observes Michael Wirtz. The 50-year-old from Winsen (Luhe) near Hamburg is a board member of the Adiposity Aid Germany Association. Wirtz complains, for example, that there are too few special exercise offers.
One speaks of obesity from a body mass index (BMI) of 30. There are three degrees of severity. In Hanover, a ward for 30 to 60-year-olds with the highest severity (BMI over 40) was set up in a nursing home. According to the operator Diakovere, in addition to permanent weight loss, it is also about becoming mobile again and breaking the isolation.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:220512-99-253693/2