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 Childhood and teen obesity rates have leveled off in the United
States, north-western Europe and other rich countries, but remain
"unacceptably high" there, researchers at Imperial College London
and the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
"Over 40 years we have gone from about 11 million to a more than
tenfold increase to over 120 million obese children and adolescents
throughout the world," lead author Majid Ezzati of Imperial's School
of Public Health, told a news conference.
This means that nearly 8 percent of boys and nearly 6 percent of
girls worldwide were obese in 2016, against less than one percent
for both sexes in 1975.
An additional 213 million children aged 5-19 were overweight last
year, but fell below the threshold for obesity, according to the
largest ever study, based on height and weight measurements of 129
million people.
The researchers called for better nutrition at home and at school,
and more physical exercise to prevent a generation from becoming
adults at greater risk of diabetes, heart disease and cancers due to
excessive weight.
Clear food labels on salt, sugar and fat content are needed to help
consumers make "healthy choices", the study said.
Taxation and tough restrictions on marketing of junk food should be
considered, it said. WHO has already recommended a 20 percent tax on
sugary drinks to reduce consumption.
RAPID TRANSITION
South Africa, Egypt and Mexico which had "very low levels of obesity
four decades ago" now have among the high rates of obesity in girls,
between 20-25 percent, Ezzati said.
"The experience of east Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean
show that the transition from underweight to overweight and obesity
can be rapid," the study said.
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If current trends continue, in 2022 there will be more obese
children and teenagers worldwide than underweight ones, who now
number 192 million, half of them in India, the study said.
Polynesia and Micronesia had the highest rates of child obesity last
year, 25.4 percent in girls and 22.4 percent in boys, followed by
"the high-income English-speaking region" that includes the United
States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Britain.
Among high-income countries, the United States had "the highest
obesity rates for girls and boys", 19.5 percent and 23.3 percent,
respectively.
"Children are not getting physical activity in the school days,
there is poor food opportunities in many schools, walking and
cycling to school is going down in many countries, unsafe in many
other countries, and parents are not being given the right,
sufficient advice on nutrition," said Fiona Bull of WHO's department
of non-communicable diseases.
"It's the changing environments, food, behaviors, portions,
consumption patterns have completely changed over the last 40 years.
Highly processed food is more available, more marketed and it's
cheaper," she said.
(Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay Editing by Jeremy Gaunt)
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