Global obesity figures: a two-tier system
For several decades, obesity has been singled out as a “global epidemic”, affecting all countries and all populations. But a recent study proves that the statistics are much more specific – and that while there is indeed a stabilization of figures in some cases, the number of people affected wordwide is still very high. Hence the importance of a project such as BNP Paribas Cardif’s obesity prevention programme, and the work of its international partners.
In May 2026, the journal Nature published a global study, coordinated by an international team of nearly 2,000 scientists (the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration) and led by Professor Majid Ezzati (Imperial College London), who observed obesity statistics in 200 countries and territories, with more than 232 million participants over the period between 1980 and 2024. Their conclusion? While in developed countries the numbers have tended to slow down or plateau, and occasionally to decline slightly, in less wealthy countries the trend continues to accelerate more or less rapidly. There is therefore a clear inequality in terms of those affected by obesity.
RICH COUNTRIES: A HARD-EARNED STABILITY
Despite a rapid advance towards the end of the 20th Century, obesity figures have slowed down and even stabilized in the majority of developed countries. This trend was observed first among school-aged children, followed about ten years later by adults. Among the countries concerned, Denmark was the first to switch in the early 90s, followed by other states including Switzerland, Belgium and Germany in the same decade.
In France, Italy and Portugal, countries in which our program’s partners are involved, the figures did not stabilize until the 2000s. That said, a plateau does not necessarily indicate a reduction in the number of people affected internationally: while childhood obesity affects 3 to 4% of girls in France, it reaches much higher levels in the United States, affecting 23% of boys, for example.
Among adults, the statistics follow the same trend, about ten years behind the variations in children. In some countries, including Spain, the figures even suggest a decline in obesity among adults.
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: A WORRYING GROWTH
Whether in Asia, Latin America, Africa or the Caribbean and Pacific islands, the figures are very different. In children and adolescents as well as in adults, obesity accelerated significantly during the period covered by the study. There is even an upward trend in regions such as sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia, which are often more affected by undernourishment problems.
The most problematic aspect remains the speed of this acceleration. Among adults, in 2024, the last year of the study, the increase in obesity figures was largest in 84 of the 200 countries observed in women, and in 109 of 200 countries in men. In some regions of Central Europe (Romania and Czechia, among others), or in Brazil, obesity reached 30 to 40% of the adult population, a higher figure than in Western European countries.
WHY THIS DIFFERENCE?
For the scientists involved in the study, economic variations and changes in eating behaviors are the obvious cause. The availability, price and use of different foods have made it possible to control obesity figures in developed countries, but these same levers have not yet been applied in less wealthy countries.
According to Professor Majid Ezzati, who led the study, these figures show that the
increase in obesity is not inevitable, but that it is important to establish programs and legislation in order to curb the epidemic. It is therefore less a question of a global problem, rather of distinct situations, each requiring a particular solution. This is why our program works in collaboration with local partners, both associations and institutions, in all the countries involved. This diversity of alliances makes it possible to precisely identify the specific needs of the different local populations, and thus to build solutions that are truly adapted to each context and each region.