Obesity as an new age health disorder has long reached the alarming stage and today in most part of the world it is considered to be an chronic epidemic which has taken into its fold millions of life, irrespective of age, gender and social status. Though the overweight and obesity syndrome is more vigorously visible in the developed industrialized nations, in many of the developing and economically less progressive countries also the crisis of obesity has stepped forward to become one of the major social concerns. Before we envisage the obesity crisis around the world in the light of statistics and critical health information, let us take note of one major point which would clear many of the misconceptions regarding obesity. The point is, we should not take obesity as only to be resulted due to the modern industrialized lifestyle prevailing in all the developed nations of the world for many successive decades. In fact this modern epidemic is really needed to be viewed as a health disorder, the primary cause of which is lack of consciousness in regard to both health functioning and organic living and all over the globe the shape and depth of this lack of consciousness is more or less the same, be it the industrialized first world or the developing nations of the new emerging economic powers of the world or poverty ridden countries. Until now the poverty stricken underdeveloped countries are not facing obesity as an epidemic because of their feeble food energy consumption and routine hard work which is mainly a consequence of their poverty, rather than any sort of consciousness regarding health and organic living. This is the reason why while obesity is seen to be a degrading health condition in the developed countries, in many parts of the world, especially in the poorer countries it is still observed with a stigma of higher social status, wealth and overall wellbeing. Let us take a closer look at the obesity crisis around the world with the help of statistics and available data.
Some Alarming Information Regarding Obesity Crisis around the World
Recent observation of the World Health Organization shown that since 1980, the number of obesity affected population has been doubled and it is still on its run of perpetual growth. According to the information provided by the same source it is observed that until the year 2008, 1.5 billion adults were either obese or overweight around the world. Of these obesity or overweight syndrome affected population the women are having a greater share with a figure of 300 million, while this figure stands at 200 million.
Country wise data regarding obesity crisis
Through the available data regarding country wise situation of obesity crisis around the world we would be able to assess some of the major conditions of obesity taking the shape of an modern epidemic which is endangering millions of lives. According to the latest assessment by World Health Organization, 65% of the population of the world lives in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight. According to the latest information USA tops the list as the country with 30.6% of population being obese which is the highest in comparison to the rate of obesity in any other country. Surprisingly, among the crowd of names of the developed nations in the list of countries with higher percentage of obesity in population, there are some developing or economically less upward countries too, like Mexico which is at the second position following USA, with an obese population percentage of 24.2% and Slovakia which is at 4th position slightly behind UK with 22.4%. However, most of the countries with a greater percentage of obese population are developed countries with a higher per capita income and higher position in the global lifestyle index.
Since 1980 obesity crisis have been accentuated and risen three fold or more in many parts of the world like, USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Eastern Europe, Middle East Countries, Australia, China and the Pacific Islands. The new age life style factors propelled by economic upheaval, modernization, technological development taking root into everyday life, globalization of packaged and processed food chains are some of the major factors which are playing crucial role in accentuating this obesity crisis around the world.
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