High global obesity rate worries health experts

Global obesity rate doubles

The number of obese people in the world has grown to alarming levels with health experts describing it and the host of deadly diseases associated with the condition as "a population emergency."

A team of researchers from the World Health Organization and Imperial College London reported on The Lancet on Friday that the number of obese people in the world has doubled since 1980. One in nine adults worldwide are now considered obese, the team said.

The high obesity rate is linked to three million premature deaths each year according to the WHO. These deaths are caused by heart disease, cancers, diabetes and many other conditions which can be linked in one way or another to being too fat.

The researchers said obesity "will cost tens of millions of preventable deaths unless rapid and widespread actions are taken by governments and health-care systems worldwide."

Obesity has been largely seen in developed countries, with the United States leading the list of having the fastest rate. Australia, Britain and New Zealand also have high rates. Although affluent nations have the most obese people, developing countries are also seeing obesity as a growing public health concern.

"These results suggest that overweight affects one-in-three adults and obesity affects one-in-nine adults -- a tsunami of obesity that will eventually affect all regions of the world," Salim Yusuf and Sonia Anand of McMaster University in Canada wrote in a commentary attached to the report.

The obesity rate for men more than doubled from 4.8 percent in 1980 to 9.8 percent in 2008, while the rate for women rose from 7.9 percent to 13.8 percent.

Posted by George Daniels on Friday February 04 2011, 4:32 AM EST. Ref: AP. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0