British children and teenagers are leading in Europe concerning obesity rates, sharing the top position with Germany according to a recent international study. The study highlights the alarming levels of obesity present in these young populations.
Comparing with America, the data is equally concerning, with similar percentages of overweight and obese girls found in both countries. This data sheds light on the severity of the issue within the UK.
This extensive global analysis projects a significant increase in obesity levels across the UK, with some age brackets expected to experience an increase of over 50%. Shockingly, it predicts that by the end of the next decade, eight out of ten British men will be classified as dangerously overweight.
Reacting to the study, experts branded the findings ‘a profound tragedy and a monumental societal failure’, and have called for ‘urgent policy reform and action’ to combat the expected rise in obesity.Â
The research, published in The Lancet, forecasts that six million people in Britain under the age of 25 will be overweight or obese by 2050, nearly double the 1990 figure.
The sharpest rise in obesity levels will be in five to 14 year olds, according to the researchers. Â
Nearly 40 per cent of girls in this age group will be overweight or obese within 15 years, increasing from 31 per cent in 2021.Â
Boys of the same age fare marginally better—a third are expected to be overweight or obese, compared to just over 20 per cent currently.
The most comprehensive global analysis to date predicts obesity will rise substantially by 2050 in the UK – and by more than half in some age groups
Currently there are 2.4 million children aged five to 14 who are overweight or obese in the UK, the same as in Germany.
The next highest in Europe is in Italy with 1.2million.
By 2050 it is expected that there will be 2.6 million Britons of the same age who fit the description, compared to 2.7 million Germans.
In the United States, overweight and obesity rates are expected to soar at equally high rates.
Compared to 1990, there will be a 60 per cent rise in five to 14 year olds who are overweight or obese.
Overall, the study suggested more than half of adults and a third of children and adolescents across the globe will be overweight or obese by 2050.
Globally, over the past three decades, obesity rates have already doubled, affecting 2.11 billion adults and 493 million young people in 2021.
Around 60 per cent of adults and a third of all children and adolescents are forecast to be either overweight or obese by 2050.
The authors said more recent generations are gaining weight faster than previous ones and obesity is occurring earlier, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer at younger ages.
Lead author, Professor Emmanuela Gakidou, from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in the US, said: ‘The unprecedented global epidemic of overweight and obesity is a profound tragedy and a monumental societal failure.
Dr Jessica Kerr from Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Australia, and co-author, said: ‘If we act now, preventing a complete transition to global obesity for children and adolescents is still possible.
‘Much stronger political commitment is needed to transform diets and living environments, whether it’s too much processed food or not enough parks.’
The study did not consider the potential impact of weight-loss injections, which may alter the longer-term forecasting trends of overweight and obesity.
