Dubai Paying Residents in Gold to Lose Weight

 In a perhaps desperate effort, the city of Dubai is offering gold as an incentive for people to lose weight. Yes, gold. Here’s how it works.   “A new campaign called ‘You are worth your weight in gold.’ Every person who participates gets one gram of gold for about every 2 pounds he or she loses.”    The program lasts for 30 days and is open to the public.   The top three people to lose the most weight will be awarded with a gold coin worth at least $5,000. People must lose at least 4.4 pounds to get the payout, but there are no restrictions for how much they can get.  New York Daily News  reports one gram of gold is worth about $45. So if you drop 5 pounds, that’s the equivalent of $225 in your pocket.  The program was organized to fight rising obesity rates in the United Arab Emirates. Similar health-focused programs have been successful in the past. ” NBC  reports in worldwide obesity rankings, the UAE, which includes Dubai and six other emirates, is in the top 10 with 30.2 percent of males and 43 percent of women considered obese. Analysts blame common culprits too little exercise and unhealthy diets.   The World Health Organization also predicts by 2030, the rate of diabetes in the UAE could rise to 19.3 percent.  A similar health initiative took place in Dubai in 2011. That program offered people prizes such as cars for losing weight.  The gold-for-lost-pounds challenge ends Aug. 16.