Qatar is serious when it comes to the health of its residents, regardless if you’re a national or an expat.
Starting this mid-April, the country will not control the amount of non-vegetarian foods which will be available at different points of sale. This means that fish and eggs, and all forms of white and red meat can be purchased based on a family’s combined weight.
The directive was proposed by the National Athleticism Council, a think tank created to help encourage people in Qatar to be more active and healthier. The move was to speed up the implementation of healthier lifestyles and to see more visible results. This also means that the NAC acknowledges the impact of non-vegetarian foods on the weight, as well as overall lives of Qatar’s residents.
According to Nihal Kadam, NAC senior researcher, “From now on, each family member living in Qatar should go to their nearest health center and record their present weight in a special passbook. They will need to present this passbook at the shops’ check-out counters while purchasing non-vegetarian foods.”
“The more the family’s total weight, the less the non-vegetarian items they can purchase. Should they lose weight after a three-month period, it should be duly recorded and stamped in the passbook. They will then be able to buy more non-vegetarian food items,” the NAC official added.
Also, shawarma shops were advised to have an extra employee who will measure a customer’s palm, when an order is placed.
Based on the positive results, the ‘non-vegetarian limitation’ will then be applied to hotels all over the country.
The directive is definitely a unique one, and may lead to residents already adjusting their lifestyle as early as today to make way for the actual start, scheduled on mid-April.
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