Obesity, these days, has become regarded by many people as “silent killer”.

The global number of individuals who is suffering from weight problems in adult society is approximately 1.6 billion people (age more than 15 years) and at least 400 million of that are overweight.

Likewise, regarding global youth obesity, there are no less than 20 million children below 5 that either have overweight or, that can become obesity if their mothers and fathers don’t take the required steps. The projection of the WHO by the year 2015 is that roughly 2.3 billion adults could be fat and more than 700 million will be obese.

While globally, there have been noticeable increases in obesity prevalence rates over the last twenty years; the following figures indicate the alarming risk of weight problems with respect to certain North American & European countries.

Obesity in USA

Over two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight or obese, and over one-third are obese, according to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2003–2006 and 2007–2008. According to the same estimate:

• 68 percent of all adults in US are overweight
• 64.1 percent of all women in US are overweight
• 72.3 percent of all men in US are overweight

Similarly, according to the same statistics, over one-third of U.S. adults are obese which means:

• 33.8 percent of all adults in US are obese
• 35.5 percent of all women in US are obese
• 32.2 percent of all men in US are obese

Obesity in UK

Within the UK, English obesity prevalence rates in adults have increased by three- to four-fold since the 1980s. The most recent available data from England and Scotland indicate obesity prevalence rates are similar in men and boys at 22 percent and 18 percent respectively. The obesity prevalence rate in Scottish women is 19 percent higher than in English women (26 percent compared to 21.9 percent). Among girls, the prevalence rate of obesity is 30 percent higher in England (18.1 percent) than in Scotland (13.8 percent).

Some of the biggest causes of the increasing obese population in high-income countries and nations include:

• The global shift in diet towards increased intake of energy-dense-foods
• The decreasing physical activity due to the increasingly sedentary nature of many types of work
• Changing ways of transportation and increasingly urbanization
• More dependency on fast food as daily meals

Moreover, these days is also significantly modifying the situation in low and middle income countries, specifically in urban settings, lead to the tendency to eat a lot more meals rich in fat as well as sugar and to the limited usage of sport and fitness facilities.

To put it briefly, it is obvious from the earlier discussion that obesity is now increasing almost as an epidemic with quickly developing rates notably between developed nations. Sad to say, healthcare drug treatment or surgical procedure has been unable to address the root reasons for obesity even among affordable society.