Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/893950
maltatoday SUNDAY 29 OCTOBER 2017 News 13 INVITATION TO A PRE QUALIFICATION PROCESS SOON COMING ASHORE The Shoreline is a new mixed use development project at the heart of Smart City featuring unparalleled seaviews coupled with exceptional specifications and first class amenities. The Shoreline will consist of the construction of a multilevel underground car park, a shopping mall and a multi block residential development over eleven levels, totalling 125,000m 2 of built up area. The Shoreline is inviting General Contractors to register their interest to participate in a Pre Qualification exercise which will result in a selected number of contractors to eventually participate in the tender process for the works at The Shoreline. Interested Contractors may register their interest by writing to The Shoreline, Suite 407, Smart City, Kalkara, or by e mail on contracting@theshorelineresidence.com by not later than the 10th day of November 2017. The Shoreline, Suite 407, Level 4, Block SCM01, SmartCity Malta, Ricasoli. T: 2180 8895 / 2180 8970; E: contracting@theshorelineresidence.com www.theshorelineresidence.com MATTHEW VELLA GIRLS in Malta and boys in Greece have the highest obesity rates in Europe, a new study by the World Health Organisation has found. In Europe, girls in Malta and boys in Greece comprised 11.3% and 16.7% of the population clas- sified as obese, respectively. The number of obese children and adolescents aged 5-19 world- wide has now risen tenfold in the past four decades. Girls and boys in Moldova had the lowest obesi- ty rates, comprising 3.2% and 5% of the population respectively. Scientists at Imperial College London and the WHO, who conducted the study, said that if current trends continue, more children and adolescents will be obese than moderately or severe- ly underweight by 2022. The study, published in The Lancet, analysed weight and height measurements from near- ly 130 million people, making it the largest ever number of par- ticipants involved in an epide- miological study. Girls in the UK had the 73rd highest obesity rate in the world (sixth in Europe); boys had the 84th highest obesity in the world (18th in Europe). Girls in the USA had the 15th highest obesity rate in the world; boys had the 12th highest obesity in the world. Among high-income countries, the USA had the highest obesity rates for girls and boys. Food marketing behind obesity rise Lead author Professor Majid Ezzati, of Imperial's School of Public Health, said obesity levels remained unacceptably high and said that the worrying trend re- flected the impact of food mar- keting and policies across the globe, with healthy nutritious foods too expensive for poor families and communities. "The trend predicts a genera- tion of children and adolescents growing up obese and at greater risk of diseases, like diabetes. We need ways to make healthy, nutritious food more available at home and school, especially in poor families and communi- ties, and regulations and taxes to protect children from unhealthy foods." The authors said that if post-2000 trends continue, glob- al levels of child and adolescent obesity will surpass those for moderately and severely under- weight youth from the same age group by 2022. Children and adolescents have rapidly transitioned from mostly underweight to mostly over- weight in many middle-income countries, including in East Asia, Latin America and the Carib- bean. The authors said this could reflect an increase in the con- sumption of energy-dense foods, especially highly processed car- bohydrates, which lead to weight gain and poor lifelong health outcomes. Dr Fiona Bull, a WHO pro- gramme coordinator said the data shows overweight and obe- sity are a global health crisis to- day, "and threatens to worsen in coming years unless we start tak- ing drastic action." Maltese girls are Europe's fattest WHO study says the world will have more obese children and adolescents than underweight by 2022 If current trends continue, more children and adolescents will be obese than moderately or severely underweight by 2022