The cost of obesity on a worldwide scale is comparable to that of smoking and more considerable than alcoholism and climatic changes. This figure has been derived from a research carried out by the McKinsey Global Institute. The research estimated the cost of obesity as £1.3tn. In the UK the cost is of £47bn. About 2.1 billion of the world’s population are overweight or obese. This constitutes about 30% of the total global population. Measures suggested by the research included relying less on the responsibility of each individual to solve the issue.
The report suggested that the proportion of overweight and obese individuals could climb up to reach almost half of the total world’s population by 2030. The growing financial costs revolved around obesity include healthcare principally. Illnesses brought about by obesity also result in loss of working days and productivity, thus having a direct impact on the economy.
Obesity is defined as an overweight person with a significant degree of body fat. Obesity is generally assessed through the Body Mass Index (BMI) which is the weight of the person in kilos, divided by the height in metre squares. A BMI figure of over 25 indicates that the person is overweight. A figure between 30-40 means that the person is obese.
Interventions needed were reported to be geared more towards the environment rather than the individual. The measures taken to limit the extent of obesity revolve around portion control for packaged food and changes brought to the formulation of fast food and processed foodstuff