Expert: 300 million now obese
Global epidemic 'getting worse before getting better'

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (Reuters) -- Obesity is a global problem that
affects 300 million people but local policies are needed to control an
epidemic which is likely to get worse before it gets better, a leading
expert says.

Professor Peter Kopelman, president of the European Association for the
Study of Obesity (EASO), believes it could be five or 10 years until the
epidemic peaks.

"We need to have strategies at a national and local level to tackle the
immediate problems that every population is facing," he said ahead of the
start of the 13th European Congress on Obesity in Prague.

"There are priorities on a national level because people who are suffering
most are largely those that are socially deprived. It is particular ethnic
groups and particular cultures that seem to be suffering from the medical
complications of obesity."

Up to 20 percent of men and 25 percent of women in European countries are
considered obese. Yugoslavia, Greece, Romania and the Czech Republic have
among the highest rates, while the Netherlands, Norway, Hungary and
Switzerland have the lowest.

"What we need to do is target population subgroups to try and immediately
reduce the prevalence of obesity in those groups," Kopelman added.

High fat, energy dense diets and sedentary lifestyles over the past 20 to
30 years, along with economic growth, urbanization and the globalization of
food markets have contributed to expanding waistlines around the globe and
have resulted in more than one billion overweight adults and at least 155
million overweight children worldwide.

Scientists are also learning more about the role of genetics and the
influence of adipose tissue in the body and how it alters the energy
balance within human beings.

"No one is predestined to become obese but people are certainly
predisposed," said Kopelman.

Targeting people and children with lifestyle measures should be a priority
to stem the problem.

Cancer link
People also need to be better educated about the impact of their diet not
only on their waistlines but on their future health.

"I still don't think people understand the fundamental causes, nor do they
relate increasing weight with potential dangers, whether it be heart
disease or diabetes," he added.

Obesity is linked with an increased risk of certain cancers, osteoarthritis
and other complications.

While local and national strategies focus on people most at risk of
becoming overweight or obesity, Kopelman said international efforts could
tackle the wider issues.

"There need to be coordinated strategies across the globe because a lot of
the problem relates to the manufacture, the promotion, the production of
food, as well as the decline in physical activity both in the developed and
the developing world," he said.

Poor countries are faced with what he called a "double whammy."

"They still have a population that is undernourished and now also, with
increasing affluence and availability of food, a population that is
becoming increasingly obese."