We recently had the privilege of interviewing Mas Watad, Co-founder and President of Dawsat International Ltd. and Mas Group, organizations engaged in the field of developing a healthy lifestyle, and nutrition and giving professional personal accompaniment to people who want to lose weight.
Dawsat is a unique and widely recognized food intake measurement method that calculates points for different types of food. It has gained global registration and success, helping people lose weight, improve health, and adopt a healthier lifestyle. Mas is an active member of Arab society and social media, sharing her knowledge in health and business through workshops, lectures, influence talks, and TV shows. She also publishes a healthy recipe magazine during Ramadan to promote balanced food consumption.
In this insightful interview, Mas Watad shares her professional journey, visions of growing her business, and insights on offering a healthy lifestyle to the community.
Advent Of Mas Watad’s Professional Journey
We started the interview by asking, “Can you walk us through your professional journey and how it led to where you are today?”
Mas Watad shared, “When I was 10 years old, I was already an entrepreneur, having compiled a handmade magazine on wellness and nutrition and sold 30 copies to all my classmates. Since then, I have been obsessed with enhancing community well-being, aspiring to be a leader focused on health and wellness. Eventually, I studied Clinical Dietetics at Hebrew University, Jerusalem, aiming to prevent diseases like diabetes.
After obtaining my bachelor’s degree, I created a food measurement unit called Dawsat, which focuses on calories, protein, and fat. Used as a point system for Arabic food, it gained popularity when I established a weight loss support group for 10 women in my community. Within 3 months, the group grew to 100 women, proving the effectiveness of teamwork. Over the years, I tested Dawsat across various Arab villages, leading to its widespread success. Now, I am recognized as the Oprah of the Arab sector, thanks to the positive impact Dawsat has on weight loss and healthy diet choices.”
“Hosting the first health and weight loss conference in the Arab sector, which attracted over 2,000 women, marked the beginning of a decade of successful annual events. In 2003, I published a leaflet on eating during Ramadan, leading to a significant interest that inspired me to compile a magazine distributed to 30,000 members of the Arab community and collaborating companies annually. This magazine, now also available digitally with over 100,000 downloads, provides essential health information for Ramadan.
We collaborated with the Leumit National Health Fund and experts to support 60,000 success stories. With Tali Singer, we expanded to the Middle East using the Dawsat app and relocated to Abu Dhabi.” He added.
Simplified Weight-loss Solutions
To learn how Mas Watad ensures to maintain her visions and business requirements, we asked, “How do you balance long-term vision with short-term operational needs?”
Mas Watad replied, “My vision has always been centered on promoting health and creating a safe environment where people feel comfortable sharing their experiences, underpinned by the power of community. This vision has evolved in response to community needs, leading to the Dawsat solution offering a culturally relevant, technology-based health coach.
Dawsat’s digital tools and mobile app simplify personalized weight loss information, making it accessible on the go. Dawsat, a points-based weight loss method, offers flexible dieting, culturally-tailored content, and supportive health coaches for an enjoyable journey.”
Adaptability Amidst Uncertainties
Challenging phases are an inevitable part of every business. To learn how Mas Watad overcame the same, we inquired, “Reflecting on your career, what have been some of the most significant challenges you’ve faced, and how did you overcome them?”
Mas Watad responded, “Global obesity rates have tripled in recent years, with the MENA region seeing some of the highest increases. Over 80% of women in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait are overweight or obese, contributing to the high levels of diabetes in the Arab world. Urgent weight loss strategies are needed to address the significant healthcare costs associated with obesity and diabetes.
The most effective way to reduce diabetes is to reduce obesity. Pre-diabetics can reduce their chance of developing diabetes by 50% by losing 5-7% of their body weight. As many know, losing weight is hard, and this is especially the case in the Arab world. Losing weight is complicated as science changes, and the plethora of information can be confusing and complicated to follow.
However, Dawsat offers culturally relevant, tech-based coaching to address challenges faced by Arabs in accessing cutting-edge nutrition information and losing weight.”
Current Offerings
We were intrigued to learn more about the services offered by Dawsat and if they have any exciting additions coming up. So, we asked, “Tell us more about your services and if you are planning to add something new in the future.”
Mas Watad said, “The efficacy of our approach is evidenced by our results: participants in our online support groups lose about 9% of their body weight and keep it off. Over 60,000 success stories inform our data-driven protocols.”
Personalized Solutions
We further asked, “What methods do you use to analyze market trends, and how have these influenced your business decisions?”
“Despite the growing awareness of the importance of preventive health, global teachers are only now starting to address the MENA audience. The local market is fragmented between Arabic content, home-testing, gyms, and physicians’ clinics. Nobody but Dawsat is bringing together advanced technology, home-grown Arabic culture, and cutting-edge nutrition science to transform the region’s wellness trajectory.
If there were a real solution to combat obesity and overweight, we wouldn’t be talking now. Drug-based solutions and food restriction programs are not effective in the long term. The method of Dawsat relies on understanding and providing solutions to one’s needs by changing habits. The real competitor would be Weight Watchers International, a method in the USA that deals with a different audience. Hence, Dawsat is unique in this culture. I have the power of science, technology, and community to transform lives and improve wellness.” She added.
A Family Lifestyle – Dawsat
To understand how Mas Watad incorporates community and social responsibility in her business, we asked, “How do you approach corporate responsibility and ethical business practices in your operations?”
Mas Watad responded, “Dawsat addresses these issues to the core. Sustainability and social responsibility are founding principles for society, combating health issues for this and the next generation. Women, as a fundamental part of the family nucleus, expand the principles of healthy eating to the whole family, promoting health not only in the current but also in future generations. 20% of our users are men. We indeed see that women implement the system for the whole family. Dawsat has become a family lifestyle.”
Redefining Businesses – Impact Of Technology
In an era of fast-paced digital transformation, every business is undergoing a massive transformation. So, we asked, “How has digital transformation affected your business model?”
Mas Watad said, “I think the power of technology to transform wellness in the MENA region is important to us, so we work hard to improve our app and technology to arrive at the right points to help people be healthy.”
A Legacy For The Upcoming Times
We ended the interview by asking, “How do you want your business to be remembered, and what steps are you taking to secure that legacy?”
“I am confident that Dawsat is the best solution in the Arab world, and this has already been recognized by the Ministry of Health in Israel and health insurance,” Mas concluded.
Follow Mas Watad on LinkedIn.
Find Dawsat on LinkedIn and visit their website https://www.Dawsat.com/
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