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The husbands and wives of 16 leaders and heads of state from that area unanimously adopted a statement on Wednesday in the Croatian capital Zagreb to tackle childhood obesity in their country and urge other countries to do the same.
According to the WHO European Regional Obesity Report 2022, one in three primary school children is overweight or obese. The WHO defines overweight as a body mass index (BMI) equal to or greater than 25 and obesity as a BMI equal to or greater than 30. According to recent estimates, overweight and obesity cause more than 1.2 million deaths annually in the European working area of the WHO, accounting for 13 percent of total deaths.
The World Obesity Atlas 2023 of the World Obesity Federation predicts that the number of obese boys and girls in WHO’s European working area will increase by 61 percent and 75 percent, respectively, between 2020 and 2035. That would mean that 17 million boys and girls 11 million girls between the ages of 5 and 19 will be obese. Overweight and obesity in all age groups would cost the WHO’s European work area 800 billion dollars (729 billion euros) by 2035.
To turn the tide, the statement puts forward three actions. First, preventive efforts to address childhood obesity should start as early as pregnancy and early childhood. Second, the food and beverage industry needs to be regulated. Third, physical activity should be promoted.
The husbands and wives present represent Albania, Armenia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain and Turkey.
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