Half of Australian children and adolescents will be overweight or obesity until 2050.

Since the 1990s, the percentage of the world population, which is overweight (with body mass index 25-30) or obesity (with body mass index 30 or more).

If the current patterns persist, we estimate that by 2050 30% of world children and adolescents (aged five to 24) will be overweight or obese, according to Our new research in lancet.

By 2050, we forecast that 2.2 million Australian children and adolescents will live with obesity. Another 1.6 million will be overweight. This is a combined frequency of 50% – and an raise of 146% in 1990–2050.

Already in 2017-2018, excessive weight and obesity cost the Australian government $ 11.8 billion. The forecast burden on the disease will raise billions of dollars to these health costs.

How did we get here? And most importantly, what can we do to change this trajectory?

It’s not just about health problems later

Life with obesity Increases the likelihood life with disabilities and dying at a adolescent age.

Obesity not only causes health problems later in life. Life with obesity It increases the chance of developing many solemn diseases in childhood or adolescence, including fatty liver disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure).

Due to teasing associated with weight, intimidation and stigma, obesity can also cause problems with mental health and school and social commitment.

Some negative effects of health obesity Can be reversed If adolescent people return to normal weight.

But reducing the weight of obese BMI (30-Plus) to normal BMI (18.5-25) is very difficult. As a result, 70-80% of teenagers with BMI of 30 or higher live in adult years with obesity.

That is why it is crucial to prevent obesity above all.

How did it happen?

Obesity is often blamed for an individual child, parent or family. This is reflected in a significant mark based on weight, which people in larger bodies often encounter.

However, rapidly changing obesity patterns around the world strengthen the importance of perception as a problem at the level of society.

. Obesity managers The epidemic is elaborate. The growing indicators of the country’s obesity often coincide with the raise in their economic development.

Economic development encourages high growth and consumption. As local agricultural systems and food supply are overtaken by “immense” companies, populations transformation to a high calorie diet.

Meanwhile, our environments become more “obese” or promoting obesity, and it is very arduous to maintain a well lifestyle, because we are surrounded by very comfortable, inexpensive and addictive high caloric food.

Obesity It arises from a biological reaction Live in these environments.

Some people are more negatively affected by life in these environments and take more weight than others. Like ours Recent studies have shownCompared to those born with low genetic risk, teenagers born with a high risk of developing obesity, more often become overweight or obese when they live in poverty.

Other Research shows People with a high genetic risk are more likely to gain weight during life in an environment promoting obesity.

Can we solve this problem?

It is expected that the highest raise in the percentage of adolescent people with obesity will be in the coming years. This means that it is possible to solve this public health problem through bold actions.

Some adolescent people with severe obesity should be provided for financing, A team free of stigma Surprise management health care. This may include:

• Access to GPS and nurses for advice on lifestyle about diet and exercises

• Obesity drugs such as semaglutide

• slimming surgery.

But to reach all adolescent people, it is superior systemsNot people, they have to change.

Success will be the greatest if the rules Change many parts of environmental systems that adolescent people live, including schools, food systems, transport systems and built -up environment. These changes will also be get to older teenagerswhose pace of obesity is constantly growing.

It is also crucial to direct commercial obesity determinants. Strategies may include:

This should be combined with changes in the built -up and urban planning environmentsuch as increasing the green space, paths and the ability to walk.

Since obesity does not belong to one part of the government, action may fall through cracks. Although they are Significant efforts Taking action requires coordinated investments from many government portfolios – health, education, transport, urban planning – at local, state and national levels.

Governments should commit themselves to a direct five -year action plan to make sure that they will not disappoint the next generation of children and youth.