More than a billion people worldwide will be obese by 2030, double what they were in 2010, according to new global estimates.
No country is on track to meet the World Health Organization’s (WHO) target to end obesity by 2025, with one in five women and one in seven men set to be reached by 2030.
Obesity has increased fastest in low- and middle-income countries. Over the next eight years, the number of obese people is expected to triple in low-income countries compared to 2010.
The new figures come from the fourth World Atlas of Obesity, released on Friday, and produced by the World Obesity Federation. Its chief executive, Johanna Ralston, said political and health leaders must recognize the gravity of the situation and act.
“The figures in our report are shocking, but what is even more shocking is how inadequate our response has been. Everyone has a fundamental right to prevention, treatment and access to appropriate care. Now is the time for concerted, decisive and people-centred action to reverse the trend of obesity.”she said.
The highest obesity rates are found in North America, Latin America and the Caribbean. Nearly half of people (47%) in the United States will likely be obese by 2030.
However, while obesity rates in the region are expected to increase by 50% between 2010 and 2030, the numbers in Africa are expected to triple, with more women affected than men.
WHO estimates that 74 million women in Africa will be living with obesity in 2030, up from 26 million in 2010, and 27 million men in 2030, up from 8 million in 2010.
In South Africa, half of women are expected to be obese by 2030, according to the report, and in Algeria almost a third of men (30%).
Nearly a quarter (22%) of preventable deaths from non-communicable diseases in Africa are attributed to overweight. The region still faces high rates of malnutrition.
Last month, the World Food Program warned that around 13 million people are waking up hungry each day in the Horn of Africa, as the region grapples with a major drought.
The Global Obesity Atlas also ranks countries according to their preparedness for obesity, including their health systems.
The most prepared are high-income countries, while the least prepared are all lower-middle-income and low-income countries, adding to concerns about the impact of obesity on already vulnerable populations.
More than 150 health experts and advocates have written to health ministers calling for an international action plan to tackle obesity.