Obesity Rising: A Problem Looming Large for the World

The World Health Organisation believes there are approximately two billion overweight adults worldwide, with the pandemic making the situation of obesity rising even worse.

That number, around 39% of the world’s population, is a huge volume of people, with at least 650 million classed as obese globally.

A survey of 10,000 students in China in 2020 found obese young people numbers rose from 10.5% to 12.6% in the first six months of the year.

In America, a study of 19,000 children compared data accrued over an 11-month period pre-pandemic and a similar time during Covid, finding prevalence of obesity rose from 36% to 46% in the 5 to 11-year-old category.

More specifically to the UK, data highlighted by the Telegraph from the NHS Digital’s National Child Measurement Programme show a 4.5% rise in obesity levels in primary school children from 2019/20 to 2020/21, the highest recorded measurement.

The pandemic seems to have made this situation worse, with decreased time spent doing moderate or vigorous activity, and increasing time spent carrying out sedentary, sleep, and screen-based activities.

Dr Corinna Koebnick, one of the authors of a study in America at the Kaiser Permanente Department of research and Evaluation in Southern California, said: “Almost all age groups gained more weight than before the pandemic, but the youngest children were most affected.

“Schools were closed, recreational activities were curtailed, social activities restricted, and the food supply impacted. These changes, combined with the emotional and financial stress caused by the pandemic, may impact energy balance and, consequently, body weight.”

But World Obesity Federation’s President Professor John Wilding urged caution in interpreting these alarming trends of obesity rising, trends that are not just restricted to the UK.

He said: “The question is whether it will reverse quite quickly – whether it will be a blip or a sustained effect. That’s the worry.”