UNBELIEVABLE: Saudi King Intervenes To Save Extremely Fat 610-Kg Man (PHOTO, VIDEO)
Khalid bin Mohsen Shaari weighs 610kg and is unable to move by himself
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King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has intervened to help a man who has become one of the heaviest people in the world.
The king ordered Khalid bin Mohsen Shaari, who weighs 610kg and is unable to move by himself, be transferred from the Southern border province of Jazan to the country's capital Riyadh to undergo treatment.
Pictures showed a fork-lift truck lifting Shaari in his bed. The spokesman said he is aged between 18 and 20.
He will be treated at the King Fahd Medical City, and undergo a series of dietary and physical programs in order to help him lose weight, the spokesman said. Although surgery is not scheduled at the moment, the Ministry of Health says it has not been ruled out. Special beds and trolleys have been made for him.
This case highlights how obesity is a growing problem in the Gulf.
According to the U.N., Kuwait has the highest proportion of obese adults in the Middle East, with 42.8% of
its population considered severely overweight. Saudi Arabia follows at 35.2%.
The growth of obesity in the region is also an economic concern. According to a report by Frost & Sullivan, healthcare spending across the Gulf will triple to $133.2 billion by 2018, mainly as a result of lifestyle diseases.
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Minister of Health Dr Abdullah al Rabeeah called the king's efforts a "humanitarian gesture".
Mr Shaeri, who weighs the same as two baby elephants or eight average-sized men, was reported to have a brother and sister who are also overweight, but able to walk.
Local media said the Saudi health ministry had dealt with other morbidly obese patients this year, including two siblings who weighed 298kg and 349kg.
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