WHO recognition of the global obesity epidemic

• Published in: International Journal of Obesity Vol. 32; no. 7S; pp. S120 - S126
• Main Author: James, W.P.T
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.12.2008; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular Diseases - etiology; Cardiovascular Diseases - prevention & control; chronic diseases; Conscientious objectors; Cost of Illness; Developing countries; disease outbreaks; disease prevalence; disease prevention; Energy; Epidemics; Epidemiology; Exercise; Food; Food systems; Global Health; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Humans; Internal Medicine; International aspects; LDCs; literature reviews; Medical research; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Medicine, Experimental; Metabolic Diseases; Metabolism; Middle age; Nutrients; nutritional adequacy; Obesity; Obesity - complications; Obesity - epidemiology; Pan American Health Organization; physical activity; Public Health; review; World Health Organization; Louisiana; United States; Europe; United Kingdom; United Kingdom > UK; United States > US; USA; anthropometry; obesity; disease burden
• ISSN: 0307-0565; 1476-5497
• DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2008.247

The recognition of obesity as a disease was in theory established in 1948 by WHO's (World Health Organization) taking on the International Classification of Diseases but the early highlighting of the potential public health problem in the United States and the United Kingdom 35 years ago was considered irrelevant elsewhere. The medical profession disregarded obesity as important despite the new evidence and WHO data set out in the 1980s. Only in 1995 did WHO find greater problems of overweight than underweight in many developing countries but it required the first special obesity consultation in 1997 and particularly the Millennium burden of disease analyses to suddenly highlight its crucial role in the current unmanageable and escalating medical costs globally. Governments now recognize the overwhelming industrial developments that guarantee an escalating epidemic but neither they nor WHO know how to engage in changing the societal framework to promote routine spontaneous physical activity and a transformation of the food system so that low energy-density food of high nutrient quality becomes the norm.