In a world where McDonald’s and insulin commercials appear to work in unison, it’s no wonder that 51 percent of the global population will be obese or overweight by 2035 if existing trends remain. A report released this month by the World Obesity Federation said this global fattening will cost the planet $4.32 trillion annually.
Only one decade from now, there will be four billion overweight people. Of these, 1.5 billion will be considered obese which requires a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30 or higher. These statistics released in the World Obesity Atlas 2023 also listed the tragic number of almost 400 million children falling into the obese category. 12 years from now, one in four people will be obese, compared to one in seven today.
Unfortunately, children and adolescents ages five to 19 are seeing the sharpest rise in obesity levels–these numbers could more than double by 2035. For girls, rates are predicted to increase by 125 percent to 175 million, and for boys, they may double to 208 million.
According to the report, the anticipated 4.32 trillion yearly cost of obesity is comparable to 2020’s impact of COVID-19. The amount would also equate to almost three percent of the global gross domestic product. The report predicts every region to endure an increase in economic effect by 2035. The Americas are projected to the carry the top costs as a proportion of GDP at 3.7 percent, and the Western Pacific region may face the greatest total costs at $1.56 trillion.
The obesity rate for men in the Americas will increase from 111 million in 2020 to 187 million in 2035, while the rate for women will grow from 135 million in 2020 to 208 million in 2035.
The World Obesity Federation introduced its report to the United Nations on March 6, and is asking governments to build national action plans to combat obesity.
Maybe the first step should be to call on agencies such as the USDA to stop classifying French fries as fresh vegetables?
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