More and more people worldwide are suffering from overweight and obesity

There are more overweight people in the world than underweight people
Many people worldwide have problems with their weight. At the present time, there are more overweight people than there are underweight people. Over the last forty years, the number of obese and obese people has increased dramatically, physicians said in a large study.

The number of overweight people around the world has dramatically increased over the last 40 years. The number of people who are overweight now exceeds the number of underweight people, researchers from Imperial College London said in a recent study. The scientists published the results of their study in the journal "The Lancet".

More and more people in the world are suffering from being overweight or obese. (Image: Kurhan / fotolia.com)

At the present time, more than 641 million people have a BMI of 30 or more
Over the last 40 years, the number of people with obesity has increased dramatically. In 1975 there were more than 105 million people with a BMI of 30 or higher. In 2014, the value was 641 million. At the present time, one in ten men and one in seven women are obese, say the doctors. The BMI calculates if a person has a healthy body weight. A BMI over 25 is considered overweight, from a value of 30, a person is obese, if the value is over 40, sufferers are morbidly obese. The number of people worldwide whose weight poses a serious threat to their health is greater than ever before, explains lead author Professor Majid Ezzati of Imperial College in London.

Both overweight and underweight are a big problem
This epidemic is too extensive to be tackled with medication. The creation of more bicycle lanes could not really solve the problem. To make a real difference, global steps must be taken, says Prof. Ezzati. These include the pricing of healthy foods and the taxation of foods that are high in sugars. But too low body weight remains in the poorest regions of the world continues to be a serious problem, the study authors explain. The global trend towards obesity should not overshadow the problem that many people around the world are not getting enough to eat, say the experts. In South Asia, for example, almost a quarter of the population is underweight. In Central and East Africa, about twelve percent of women and 15 percent of men are underweight, add the physicians.

Study examines nearly twenty million adults from 186 countries
The new study was supported by the World Health Organization and more than 700 researchers worldwide participated in the study. These analyzed the data of nearly twenty million adults from 186 countries. They found that over the past four decades, the average male BMI has risen from 21.7 to 24.2. In women, he increased from 22.1 to 24.4, the scientists say. The world's population is about 1.5 kg heavier every decade. If this global trend continues, 18 percent of men and 21 percent of women will be obese by 2025, warn physicians.

American adults have the highest BMI worldwide
The researchers also found that Japanese adults had the lowest BMI of all high-income countries and American adults had the highest BMI. There are more overweight men and women living in China and the United States than in any other country in the world, the doctors report. The lowest BMI in Europe was found in Swiss women and Bosnian men. A morbid obesity affects about one percent of men and two percent of women worldwide, explain the researchers. Overall, 55 million adults are morbidly obese. (As)