Brazil could have 50% of obese or overweight children and adolescents by 2035

Brazil could have up to 50% of children and adolescents between 5 and 19 years old with obesity or overweight in 2035, according to the World Obesity Atlas 2024, launched this Friday (1st) by the World Obesity Federation. The document provides current data on the disease worldwide and projections for the coming years.

According to the document, the annual growth rate of obesity in Brazilian children and adolescents between 2020 and 2035 will be 1.8%. According to the data, the prevalence of children and adolescents with high BMI (Body Mass Index) was 34% in 2020, with more than 15 million affected. By 2035, the projection is that this rate will reach 50%, with more than 20 million children and adolescents obese or overweight.

In relation to adults, the Atlas suggests that there will be an annual increase of 1.9% in the numbers of Brazilian adults with obesity and overweight between 2020 and 2035. Furthermore, the document shows that, in 2019, there were 177,929 deaths due to diseases non-communicable diseases attributed to obesity, such as diabetes, coronary artery disease, stroke and cancer. Of these, 33,811 deaths were due to diabetes.

Data points to growing obesity in poor countries

In addition to data on Brazil, the document also provides global estimates for obesity. According to the information, almost 3.3 billion adults will be affected by obesity in 2035, representing 54% of the world's population.

In 2020, the estimated number of obese adults in the world was 2.2 billion. This is a higher value than the data announced on Thursday (29) in a study published in The Lancet in collaboration with the WHO (World Health Organization), which showed that there are 1 billion people living with obesity in the world.

Both documents, however, show that the poorest countries are those most affected by the disease. According to the World Obesity Atlas, the nations with the highest proportion of adults living with obesity and overweight are Tonga and Samoa. The study published in The Lancet indicates the same countries as the leaders in obesity.

“The highest incidences of these diseases in the world are leaving the United States and going to other regions, largely due to the export of foods with low nutritional value, but with great caloric appeal”, comments Ricardo Cohen, coordinator of the Specialized Center for Obesity and Diabetes from Hospital Alemão Oswaldo Cruz, which was not involved in the studies, CNN .

Given this scenario, in the expert's view, obesity prevention should be the main strategy adopted globally, in addition to increasing access to treatments, such as anti-obesity medications and surgery.

“Prevention involves eating better, sleeping better, staying away from screens and having less stress. In short, you need to clean your life. This is the message that needs to be sent and I hope that, in 20 years, these obesity numbers will start to fall”, he concludes.

Data from the study published in The Lancet also showed that obesity more than doubled among adults and quadrupled among children and adolescents aged 5 to 19, in the period between 1990 and 2022. According to the analysis, 159 million children and adolescents and 879 million adults were living with obesity in 2022 In 1990, the number of obese boys and girls was 31 million, while the number of adults was 195 million.