Obesity getting bigger in France

MORE than 20 million people in France are overweight and the number of people with obesity has almost doubled in 12 years, new research has found.

The latest edition of the three-yearly ObEpi report puts the obesity rate in France at 6.5 million, almost 15% of the total population. Another 14 million are considered overweight but not obese.

The newly published study found that the average person today is 3.1kg heavier, 0.5cm taller and has an extra 4.7cm on their waist compared with 1997.

There is also a link between household income and weight - with 22% of people earning less than €900 a month considered obese, compared with 6% of those on more than €5,300.

The north-east of the country and the Ile-de-France had the highest number of obese people. The best-performing regions were Brittany, the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur.

The report's author Marie-Aline Charles, a research director at the National Institute for Health and Medical Research, told Le Monde: "It is hardly a surprise, given that child obesity has risen steadily since 1960. The first generation of obese children will be in their fifties today.

"We will continue to see obesity rates increase. It is like an ocean liner that once launched cannot be stopped quickly.

"It is imperative that we continue with the prevention messages, encouraging people to live a less sedentary lifestyle and eat a more balanced diet."

The research was carried out by TNS Healthcare Sofres, using a sample of 25,000 people, and is financed by pharmaceutical giant Roche.