More than one billion people around the world are now suffering from obesity with the number having more than quadrupled since 1990, according to a study released by the Lancet medical journal. The “epidemic” is particularly hitting poorer countries and the rate is growing among children and adolescents faster than adults, according to the study carried out with the World Health Organization. The study, released ahead of World Obesity Day on March 4, estimated that […]
Tag: obesity
Popular weight loss drugs linked to higher risk of stomach paralysis, pancreatitis, bowel obstruction
WASHINGTON, Oct 5, 2023 (AFP) – Drugs like Ozempic, which have become increasingly popular for losing weight, heighten the risk of certain severe gastrointestinal problems including stomach paralysis, according to a large study published Thursday. The paper, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), looked at a class of drugs called GLP-1 agonists that includes the brands Wegovy, Ozempic, Rybelsus and Saxenda. It then compared the rate of serious side effects to […]
Obesity greatest risk factor for young adults with Covid-19
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Young adults with underlying conditions such as morbid obesity, diabetes and hypertension are at the highest risk of being placed on a ventilator or dying from Covid-19, according to a study of 3,000 hospitalized patients aged 18 to 34. The analysis, published Wednesday in the journal Jama Internal Medicine, focused on patients hospitalized between April and June in the United States. It confirmed first and foremost that black and Hispanic […]
Experts probe obesity link to severe virus response
by Kelly MACNAMARA PARIS, France (AFP) — Inflammatory and immune responses linked to obesity could help explain the likelihood of a more severe outcome among patients with Covid-19, European experts said Wednesday. As the new coronavirus has spread, killing more than 800,000 people globally, it has become increasingly clear that co-morbidities put patients at greater risk. In a presentation at European and International Congress on Obesity, researchers said that inflamation caused by a buildup of […]
Junk food linked to age-marker in chromosomes: study
by Marlowe HOOD Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — People who eat a lot of industrially processed junk food are more likely to exhibit a change in their chromosomes linked to ageing, according to research presented Tuesday at an online medical conference. Three or more servings of so-called “ultra-processed food” per day doubled the odds that strands of DNA and proteins called telomeres, found on the end of chromosomes, would be shorter compared […]
Malnutrition in poorer nations costs firms up to $850 billon: study
by Kelly MACNAMARA PARIS, France (AFP) — Hunger, poor nutrition and obesity not only present a health burden in developing countries but carry a hidden economic penalty that costs businesses up to $850 billion a year, according to a new report published Wednesday. Researchers said malnutrition reduces the resilience of populations to risks such as infectious disease outbreaks and extreme climate events, as well as causing a reduction in productivity and earnings. With the coronavirus […]
1-in-3 young children undernourished or overweight: UNICEF
by Marlowe HOOD PARIS, France (AFP) — A third of the world’s nearly 700 million children under five years old are undernourished or overweight and face lifelong health problems as a consequence, according to a grim UN assessment of childhood nutrition released Tuesday. “If children eat poorly, they live poorly,” said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore, unveiling the Fund’s first State of the World’s Children report since 1999. “We are losing ground in the fight […]
Obesity-linked cancers on the rise in young adults
by Marlowe Hood Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A sharp increase in the rate of obesity-linked cancers among young adults in the United States could foreshadow a reversal in the overall decline in cancer mortality, researchers warned Monday. In a sweeping study covering two-thirds of the US population, they showed that half a dozen cancers for which obesity is a known risk factor became more frequent from 1995 to 2015 among women […]
‘Radical rethink’ needed to tackle obesity, hunger, climate: report
by Marlowe HOOD Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — To defeat the intertwined pandemics of obesity, hunger and climate change, governments must curb the political influence of major corporations, said a major report Monday calling for a ‘global treaty’ similar to one for tobacco control. Bu this will not happen unless ordinary citizens demand a “radical rethink” of the relationship between policymakers and business, nearly four dozen experts from The Lancet Commission on Obesity […]
Too fat to fight: Pentagon grapples with obesity epidemic
by Thomas Watkins Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Forget about the high-tech military challenges from China and Russia, the Pentagon is facing a fast-growing national security threat that could be even trickier to tackle: America’s obesity crisis. A study released this week has found that nearly one-third of young Americans are now too overweight to join up, a worrying statistic for military officials already facing recruitment challenges. “Obesity has long threatened […]
In US, obesity, smoking more common in rural areas: study
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — People who live in rural areas of the United States are far more likely than city dwellers to smoke, be overweight, and face a host of related health concerns, researchers said Tuesday. Many chronic diseases are linked to obesity, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some cancers and arthritis, and researchers say understanding local trends can help them design better intervention strategies. The study in the Journal of the American […]
World faces ‘staggering’ obesity challenge: study
PARIS, France (AFP) — In 27 years from now, almost a quarter of the global population will be obese, researchers said Wednesday, warning of the mounting medical bill. If current trends continue, 22 percent of people in the world will be obese by 2045, up from 14 percent last year, according to research presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Vienna. One in eight people, up from one in 11, will have type […]





