What are common health consequences of overweight and obesity?
Overweight and obesity lead to serious health consequences. Risk increases progressively as BMI increases. Raised body mass index is a major risk factor for chronic diseases such as: • Cardiovascular disease (mainly heart disease and stroke) – already the world’s number one cause of death, killing 17 million people each year. • Diabetes – which has rapidly become a global epidemic. WHO projects that diabetes deaths will increase by more than 50% worldwide in the next 10 years. • Musculoskeletal disorders – especially osteoarthritis. • Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon). Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of premature death and disability in adulthood. Many low- and middle-income countries are now facing a “double burden” of disease: • While they continue to deal with the problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, at the same time they are experiencing a rapid upsurge in chronic disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in ur
