(PAGE 2): Obesity and overweight are considered one of the greatest health challenges facing society today.

Comprehensive new global survey now shows more people are obese than underweight, writes BBC.

Not the USA at the top

A study published in the recognized journal The Lancet compared the body mass index of nearly 20 million women and men in 186 countries from 1975 to 2015.

The figures show, among other things, that obesity among men increased from 3.2 percent to 10.8 percent. Obesity among women increased from 6.4 percent in 1975 to 14.9 percent.

Other findings from the study show that China is now the country with the most people suffering from obesity, with 43.2 million men and 46.4 million women.

In the United States, 41.7 million men suffer from obesity, while 46.1 million women fall into the same category.

A fifth of the world’s population suffering from obesity lives in a high-income, English-speaking country; Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Great Britain and the United States.

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The peak of obesity

In 40 years, there has been a marked increase in the number of overweight people with a body mass index above 30, which is called “obesity”, writes Dagens.dk.

The website listed the countries with the largest populations. The number in parentheses indicates the country’s position on the same list in 1975.

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Obesity means having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more. A BMI of 20 to 25 is defined as normal weight, while a BMI of 25 to 30 is defined as overweight.

Page2 has already written about Top 10 places suffering from obesity percentageas well as previous lists of the top 10 countries with the biggest number people suffering from obesity.

These countries have the most men with a body mass index above 30:

1) China – 43.2 million (13)
2) United States – 41.7 million (1)
3) Brazil – 11.9 million (10)
4) Russia – 10.7 million (2)
5) India – 9.8 million (19)
6) Mexico – 8.9 million (12)
7) Germany – 8.3 million (3)
8) Great Britain – 6.8 million (4)
9) Italy – 5.8 million (6)
10) France – 5.6 million (5)

These countries have the most women with a body mass index above 30:

1) China – 46.4 million (10)
2) United States – 46.1 million (2)
3) India – 20 million (19)
4) Russia – 18.7 million (1)
5) Brazil – 18 million (9)
6) Mexico – 13.9 million (11)
7) Egypt – 10.2 million (12)
8) Türkiye – 9.9 million (14)
9) Germany – 8.5 million (4)
10) Iran – 8 million (18)