Scientific research has just revealed that levels of obesity and illnesses associated with being overweight, are spiralling out of control. They are increasing every year and are putting the medical services, especially our NHS, under a lot of pressure. Obesity is a ticking time-bomb ready to explode.
Cancer Research UK, the Lancet Report, the World Health Organisation and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation have all published their most recent findings and all have agreed : levels of obesity have nearly tripled since 1975 and by the end of 2017 it was estimated that more than 1.9 billion adults (over 18) were now overweight. By 2050 half of the world’s population could be overweight. In fact, most of the world’s population live in countries where being overweight and obese kills more people than being underweight. The country Nauru, located close to Papua New Guinea, is the most obese country in the world as 61% of its population is obese.
The UK has the highest level of obesity in Western Europe, ahead of countries such as France, Germany, Spain and Sweden. More than 7 in 10 millennials – those born between the early 80s and mid 90s – are set to be overweight or obese between the ages of 35-44, according to estimates by Cancer Research UK.
Numbers among children are also quite astonishing. 41 million children in the world under the age of 5 are overweight or obese, the research revealed. And over 340 million children and adolescents aged 5-19 were overweight world-wide in 2017. That’s 1 in 9 children!
NHS data from January 2018 shows that 9.6 per cent of children in the UK are dangerously overweight by the time they start school – an increase from 9.3 per cent the year before. By the time children reach the age of 10 and 11, 20% are obese and this will have massive consequences on their health and confidence as they start Secondary School.
Health campaigners said the figures were “horrifying” and that something needs to be done. Most cases of obesity are, in fact, preventable.
Here are some things that you can do to avoid being obese or overweight:
- Eat more fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains.
- Exercise, even moderately, for at least 30 minutes a day.
- Cut down your consumption of fatty and sugary foods.
- Use vegetable-based oils rather than animal-based fats
- Go out and enjoy fresh air as much as possible.
- Never feel ashamed, but stay informed and act now.
-by Javier