One in eight people in the world is obese

THE WORLD Madrid

Madrid

Updated Friday, March 1, 2024-00:35

Obesity is one

of

the main public health problems on a global scale.

This is demonstrated by a new study whose figures are shocking.

Take note: one in eight people today lives with obesity, which means

more than one billion individuals with weight problems

.

According to the data from the work, which is published in the journal

The Lancet

, obesity figures in adults have doubled since 1990. In the case of children, the work draws an even more worrying picture: in these little more than 30 years ,

obesity rates have increased fourfold.

"It is very worrying that the obesity epidemic that was evident in adults in much of the world in 1990 is now reflected in children and adolescents," Majid Ezzati, a researcher at Imperial College London and one of the main signatories, said in a statement. of work, which has also evaluated the global impact of malnutrition problems.

While the percentage of people affected by malnutrition has reduced significantly globally between 1990 and 2022, "it remains a problem for

hundreds of millions of people

, particularly in some of the poorest parts of the world," Ezzati added.

The work evaluated the weight and height of around 220 million people (63 million were between five and 19 years old and 158 million were over 20 years old) from 190 countries.

In total, more than 1,500 international researchers have participated in the analysis, which mainly used the calculation of body mass index (BMI) to stratify the participants.

In adults, a person is considered obese

if their BMI is greater than 30 kg/m2

.

In the case of malnutrition, the usual threshold is set at 18.5 kg/m2.

The countries with the highest prevalence of obesity were, according to the article, Tonga and Samoa in the case of women and Samoa and Nauru in the case of men, with obesity figures exceeding 60%.

In Spain

, the article shows obesity rates of 19.4% in men (seven points more than in 1990);

and 13% in women (almost five points less than 30 years ago).

In children, the prevalence is 12% in boys (2.4 points more than in 1990) and 9.3% in girls (4.9 points more than in 1990).

Other previous studies, however, have shown higher figures for overweight and obesity, especially in the case of women.

The importance of prevention

On a global scale, the study estimates that in 2022 there will be 880 million adults (504 million women and 374 million men) and 160 million children and adolescents living with obesity in the world.

In 1990, the study highlights, these figures were significantly lower.

For example, in adults, 30 years ago, obesity figures were around 195 million.

"This new study highlights the importance of preventing and addressing obesity from childhood to adulthood, through diet, physical activity and appropriate care," Tedros Adhanom

Ghebreyesus

, director of the World Health Organization (WHO).

The international organization, which collaborated in the preparation of the study, has called for interventions to stop what is already considered an epidemic.

In a statement, it recalls that in 2022 a

plan was adapted to accelerate the fight against obesity

that promotes the implementation of strategies that contemplate policies such as the implementation of fiscal measures to promote healthy diets, the regulation of advertising of certain foods or laws relating to to labeling.