LONDON: More than one billion people worldwide are now considered to be obese, a condition linked to an increased risk of a range of serious health problems, according to the latest estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO) and an international group of researchers.
Obesity is so prevalent that it has become more common than underweight in most countries, including many low- and middle-income countries that previously struggled with malnutrition.
“A large number of people are living with obesity,” said Majid Ezzati, senior author of the paper published in The Lancet on Thursday (29 February) and a professor at Imperial College London.
The findings, considered the most authoritative independent estimates, are based on data from more than 220 million people in more than 190 countries.
Although obesity rates are erratic in many rich countries, they are rising rapidly elsewhere, Ezzati added. And while being underweight is becoming less common globally, in many countries it remains a significant problem, leaving more and more countries facing what is known as the “double burden” of malnutrition.
“In the past, we have thought of obesity as a rich man’s problem. Obesity is a global problem,” Francesco Branca, head of nutrition at WHO, told a news conference.
Obesity rates for adults more than doubled between 1990 and 2022, and more than quadrupled among children and teenagers aged 5 to 19, the paper said.
Over the same period, the proportion of girls, boys and adults considered underweight fell by a fifth, a third and a half, respectively, according to the analysis.
Ezzati called rising obesity rates among children “very concerning,” similar to the trajectory seen in adults since even before 1990. At the same time, he said, hundreds of millions of people still don’t have enough to eat.
