No One to Walk With

Health and wellness are hot topics here in the UAE, where obesity is out of control and the country's reputation is growing as the Gulf's Diabetes capital . For the Muslim population the situation is complicated, with the separation of the sexes and the women's need to cover, creating barriers to the pursuit of active lifestyles. And then there's the Lebanese pastry counter at the supermarket, with all form of pistachio and honeyed sweet to mess with any attachment you might have to whole-grain living.

At home we think we're doing ok with our kids, who eat cheese and fruit after school and take brown bread in their lunch boxes. But we get sabotaged by school-sanctioned birthday celebrations which include not only cakes in the school, but candy bags sent home to mess with our delicate hard-won snack regime. And then our neighbor's housekeeper seems to love giving Rosie chocolates. But what can you do? Fortunately 9-year-old Brady knows how to read labels for sugars and fats, and even 5-year-old Rosie knows that 100% juice is the good kind. Woohoo for Boulder-inspired parental badgering!!!

But public health initiatives are behind the times in the UAE, and local moms are often young and inexperieced in the ways of healthy living. This week in class we discussed the topic of transport, and walking was listed as one of the many methods of getting around. We discussed the pros and cons of cars, donkeys, subways, bicycles, and yes, walking as ways to get from place to place. But when the idea of walking was presented as an option, loads of excuses were given as to why it is simply not done here, including bad weather 6 months out of 12, non-existent sidewalks and reckless drivers.

But the crux of the problem is actually rather sad and culturally difficult to get around. One of my students says she loves to walk and every so often she convinces a brother to take her to the mall to walk a few laps, with him. But when I asked her why she doesn't simply take a walk in the neighborhood before school in the morning, or after dinner while it is still light outside, she said 'No Miss. It is not allowed for girls to be alone. I am not allowed to walk outside our house by myself, and no one will go with me'. So in a culture where even a most basic part of living healthy is not allowed, what are these women to do?