“I go into schools in Doha to teach children about eating fruit and vegetables. When they look at the cucumbers and carrots, they always look down at them.” Ghanim al-Sulaiti is sitting on a wooden bench outside Evergreen Organics, the vegan café he co-founded in 2016 in Doha, the Qatari capital. A glass of green juice sits beside the 26-year-old, who is on a mission to make his country healthier. Changing attitudes is challenging, he says, and promoting vegetables has been particularly tricky. “The children think they are poor people’s food.”

Qatar was an impoverished British protectorate until oil was discovered in 1939. In the past 80 years the country has become one of the world’s richest: income per capita stands at €112,300. But waistlines have grown alongside wealth: today more than 70 per cent of Qatari nationals are either overweight or obese, and a worrying 17 per cent have diabetes, which is double the world average.

“We recognise that we have to do something quick because we now have an intergenerational problem that is going to be costly on so many levels: personal and societal,” says Dr Monica Skarulis, director of the National Obesity Treatment Center, which opened last year under the state healthcare umbrella.

The Gulf’s weighty issues are the result of a fairly unique set of circumstances (alongside Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia also struggle with similar obesity levels). A penchant for American fast food combines with cultural traditions that value meat-rich family banquets. A location at the heart of a trading region means food is abundant. Markets overflow with tropical vegetables, nuts, seeds and spices – but also with pistachio nougat from Iran and bright sweets from India. Lifestyles are car-driven as summer temperatures in the mid-40cs make walking nigh on impossible. The problem isn’t confined to Qatari passport holders, either: it’s commonly said that new expats gain a stone (6.35kg) as they settle into their new home.

“In my first six months in Doha I gained 15kg,” says Rasha Gadelrab, a 42-year-old nurse at the obesity centre who is originally from Egypt. “There was no time to do any activity and the weather makes it too difficult to walk outside.”

Qatari authorities are waking up to the costly problems of an overweight nation. The current national health strategy aims for a 5 per cent reduction in obesity levels by 2022 – an ambitious target – alongside promoting healthy eating and exercise. A major anti-diabetes campaign (the condition is closely linked to excess weight) means adverts boasting the words “Preventing Diabetes Together” and the Ministry of Public Health logo now grace shopping malls and newspapers. The campaign’s advice is blunt: “Remember: eat less and move more.”

Demand at the obesity centre is high: Dr Skarulis’s team receives 500 referrals every month. Services – even bariatric surgery to drastically reduce stomach volume – are free for Qatari nationals, while residents, who make up more than 80 per cent of the small country’s population, receive discounted medication and testing. At reception, women in black niqabs stand next to teenage boys wearing AirPods. The buttons strain on their thawbs, the long white gowns worn by men in the Gulf region.

“This population has very erratic and, forgive me for saying it, undisciplined eating behaviour – they eat late at night,” says Dr Skarulis, sitting in a bright consultation room. “These are challenges not only to the [healthcare] provider but, clearly, to the patient to try to modify their lifestyle so that they can actually lose weight.”

Nevertheless, her small team is already producing results. A typical programme includes fortnightly consultations, a diet plan and exercise guidelines. Monishaw Gakhar has lost 15kg in eight months, under the guidance of consultant endocrinologist Noor Suleiman, after warnings that she could develop diabetes. “I had to lose weight no matter what. It became a necessity,” the 58-year-old administration manager says.

Staff have also benefited from their own advice to patients. Gadelrab, the nurse who had gained weight on arrival in Qatar, has since lost 27kg. “I had to be a good example for the patients; I decided to change my lifestyle forever,” she says, beaming.

Although the car is still king in Qatar, opportunities to exercise are becoming more accessible. Public Al Bidda Park reopened last February after a four-year hiatus. Equipped with outdoor gym equipment and cycle paths, the space is a welcome green spot in central Doha. All the same, working out inside is the only practical summer option so mass-market gyms have multiplied in recent years, while the elite hire specialists to keep the kilos off. At The Diplomatic Club private members’ club, Sheikh Khalifa al-Thani – a member of the Qatari royal family – lifts weights under the watch of his personal trainer, Houssam Thumayd. “I do a lot of cardio and I control my food; I lost more than 25kg,” says Al-Thani. “I feel like a family with Houssam: he does a great job.”

Qatar still faces challenges, particularly when it comes to cultural hurdles. Ghanim al-Sulaiti of Evergreen Organics comes across some reticence to choosing vegetables over meat. “I get a lot of people coming to me saying, ‘You’re fighting against tradition and culture and that’s not good,’” he says. “People [in Qatar] used to eat lots of grains, root vegetables, dates and fruit. They rarely used to eat meat because it wasn’t available and it was so expensive. We were a poor country at that point. I think people don’t realise that.”

Indeed, Qatar got rich quick. It also got fat quick. While it might take time to reverse the obesity trend, the Gulf nation has made strides to slim down. More obesity treatment centres, cheaper healthy food options and more public transport could move things along – not to mention a national campaign to celebrate cucumbers and carrots.