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Updated October 19th, 2019 at 20:08 IST

Obesity rates escalate due to shift in global diet: UN-FAO report

A report issued on the occasion of World Food Day by the UN's FAO claimed that the world is leading to high global obesity rates due to global diet shift

Reported by: Bhavya Sukheja
Obesity
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A report issued on the occasion of World Food Day by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), said that eating food high in starch, sugar, fats, and salt combined with an unhealthy lifestyle is leading to high global obesity rates, even in countries where many people still suffer from hunger. The UN claims that due to globalization, urbanization, and growth in income the world has shifted away from seasonal, mainly plant-based and fiber-rich food. Consumers in urban areas also find less time to cook at home and as a result, they tend to rely on fast-food and street food vendors which have led to a situation whereby almost 800 million people are considered obese. 

READ: Obesity Hypoventilation Syndrome: Signs And Symptoms

World Food Day

World Food Day is an international day celebrated every year around the world on October 16 which is also the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN in 1945. In the reports, the UN claims that over 40 million children under-five are overweight and due to unhealthy eating habits, the health costs are estimated at around $2 trillion per year. Health issues such as diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers are also a result of such a sedentary lifestyle.

“821 million people are still suffering from hunger across the world, with numbers increasing over the past three years, and around one in three children are malnourished and not developing properly: in some parts of Africa, hunger has risen by almost 20 per cent.”

READ: Obesity Before The Age Of 40 Is An Alarming Risk For Cancer: Study

Food Systems Summit

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres discussed the need to transform food systems in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He further also encouraged people to promote healthy diets that can restore the United Nations' goal of zero hunger. It is also believed that the way that food is currently consumed and produced, it has a significant effect on climate change. Guterres further announced that he hopes to convene a major Food Systems Summit in 2021 which will be a part of the Decade of Action to deliver the SDGs. 

"By promoting healthy living to their citizens, governments can make savings, by cutting food-related health problems; and the private sector can make a difference by reducing the number of harmful ingredients in their products," he added. 

READ: Here's What Causes Asthma In Kids With Obesity

READ: Does Asthma Contribute To Childhood Obesity Epidemic?

(With inputs from ANI)

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Published October 19th, 2019 at 16:36 IST

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