New publication: “The New Syndemic of Obesity and COVID-19 in Urban areas”
Together with two of our prior post-doc’s, Margarida Pereira and Jessica Dimka, our Centre leader S-E Mamelund has written a chapter in a new book: Pandemics and Urban Planning: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Cities, Planning and Disease | SpringerLink. The book
- Discusses the potential of urban planning in anticipation and prevention of infectious disease epidemics and pandemics
- Offers multidisciplinary insights from historical case studies to present issues, and charting pathways into the future
- Encourages cross-sectoral discussions and integrative policies between urban planning and health fields
Our chapter (chap 10) is titled The New Syndemic of Obesity and COVID-19 in Urban Areas | SpringerLink
Abstract: Soon after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, clinicians and scientists warned that individuals with obesity developed more severe cases of COVID-19, needed more intensive healthcare, and had higher chances of dying. Currently, nearly 40% of the world’s adult population is overweight and 15% has obesity. Obesity rates are higher in urban areas, which were the locations where the first large outbreaks of COVID-19 occurred. However, obesity is more than a risk factor for COVID-19 and addressing it as such underestimates the negative effect of the interaction between both diseases on social, health and gender equity. Obesity prevalence is higher in women, unemployed individuals, and those with lower socioeconomic status. The emergence of this new syndemic adds evidence on how poor health outcomes tend to cluster spatially and increase health inequities, particularly in urban areas. Hence, urban planning plays an important role in preventing social, health, and gender disparities. The ability to create healthier urban configurations for all is an important means to protect vulnerable populations and urban neighbourhoods during a pandemic. An equity lens is needed to address the major planning, namely land use, mobility, accessibility, and housing, as a strategy to tackle this new syndemic.