March 3, 2023 – If current trends proceed, greater than half the world’s population can be obese or obese by 2035, with obesity amongst children and adolescents increasing at an alarming rate, a brand new report from the World Obesity Federation says.
By 2035, about 51% of the world's population, or 4 billion people, may very well be obese or obese, in line with the World Obesity Atlas 2023. says. This could be a big increase from 2020, when about 38% of the world's population, or 2.6 billion people, were classified as obese or obese.
The proportion of the world's population affected by obesity could rise from 14 percent in 2020 to 24 percent in 2035, the report says.
Obesity rates amongst children and adolescents could double in the following 12 years. The proportion of young men who’re obese could rise from 10% in 2020 to twenty% in 2035, and the proportion of young women who’re obese could rise from 8% to 18%.
If no preventive measures are taken, the worldwide economic damage brought on by being obese or obese could reach $4.32 trillion annually by 2035, the report says.
“At almost 3% of global GDP (gross domestic product), this corresponds to the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020,” the report said.
The association’s forecasts are based on data from the World Health Organization. Definitions The body mass index (BMI) of obesity is over 30, and that of obese is over 25. BMI is defined as an individual's weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters.
The association called on governments to make systematic changes to reverse this trend, quite than blaming individuals for obesity, which it describes as a “chronic, recurring disease.”
“To be clear, the economic impact of obesity is not the fault of the people living with the disease,” says Johanna Ralston, Federation CEO. “It is the result of failures at the highest levels to provide the environment, health, food and support systems we all need to live happy and healthy lives.”
While obesity is commonly seen as an issue of high-income countries, nine of the ten countries with the most important projected increases in obesity are low- or lower-middle-income countries in Asia and Africa, the report says.