Article: Obesity Higher in European Countries

Obesity Higher in Some European Countries

Tue Mar 15, 4:25 PM ET Health - AP

By JENNA PAYNE, Associated Press Writer

BRUSSELS, Belgium - At least seven European countries now challenge the
United States in size - at least around the waistline. In a group of nations
from
Greece to Germany, the proportion of overweight or obese men is higher than
in the U.S., experts said Tuesday in a major analysis of expanding girth on
the
European continent.

"The time when obesity was thought to be a problem on the other side of the
Atlantic has gone by," said Mars Di Bartolomeo, Luxembourg's Minister of
Health.

In Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Malta and Slovakia,
a higher percentage of men are obese or overweight than the estimated 67
percent
of men in the United States, according to a report from the International
Obesity
Task Force, a coalition of researchers and institutions. The analysis was
released
as the 25-nation European Union announced an initiative to enlist the food
and
marketing industries in the fight against fat.


Obesity is especially acute in Mediterranean countries, underscoring
concerns
that people in the southern region are turning away from the traditional
diet of
fish, fruits and vegetables to fast food high in fat and refined
carbohydrates.
In Greece, for example, 38 percent of women are obese, compared with
34 percent in the United States, the group said. Even in countries with low
rates
of obesity, troubling trends are emerging. In France, obesity in women rose
from
8 percent in 1997 to 11.3 percent in 2003, and from 8.4 percent to 11.4
percent
in men.

The change in diets, which the obesity task force said has occurred over the
past two decades, affects children most because it is reflected in school
lunches.
The task force estimated that among the EU's 103 million youngsters the
number
of those overweight rises by 400,000 each year. More than 30 percent of
children
ages 7 to 11 are overweight in Italy, Portugal, Spain and Malta, it said.
That matches
estimates for American children. Among American adults, about two-thirds are
overweight or obese; nearly one-third qualify as obese.

The International Obesity Task Force, which is advising the European Union,
had estimated in 2003 that about 200 million of the 350 million adults
living in
what is now the European Union may be overweight or obese. However, a closer
evaluation of the figures in the latest analysis indicated that may be an
underestimate,
according to the group.

To counter the worsening trend, the EU is pushing a united effort from the
food and
marketing industries, consumer groups and health experts. "The industry is
being
challenged to demonstrate, transparently, that it is going to
be part of the solution," Philip James, chairman of the IOTF said in a
telephone
interview after the launch of the program in Brussels. "They have to say how
much
more money they will add to help solve the obesity problem. They have to put
forward a plan on how exactly they are going to contribute year by year, and
their
contribution has to get bigger every year," he added.

The food industry says it will better inform consumers with detailed
nutrition labels.
The EU office also wants tastier healthy foods to compete with high-calorie,
non-nutritious fare. Studies have shown that being overweight can
dramatically
increase the risk of certain diseases, such as diabetes. Obesity is also
linked to
heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, respiratory disease, arthritis
and
some types of cancer. "We can have disastrous effects from (obesity) on
health
and the national economy, " EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou said.

Following up to Big Jimbo

In Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Malta and Slovakia,
a higher percentage of men are obese or overweight than the estimated 67
percent of men in the United States,

It must be very reassuring for that 67% to have 7 other places
that eat too many pies, there are also places that didn't ratify
Kyoto, no doubt that's a comfort!
Obesity is a problem of affluence, as Mixi tells us Europe is
dirt poor, I cant see how it can be effecting us?
--
Mike Reid
Wasdale-Thames path-London-Photos "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" -- you can email us@ this site
Eat-walk-Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" -- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap

"Big Jimbo" wrote in message . com...
Obesity Higher in Some European Countries

Tue Mar 15, 4:25 PM ET Health - AP

By JENNA PAYNE, Associated Press Writer

BRUSSELS, Belgium - At least seven European countries now challenge the
United States in size - at least around the waistline. In a group of nations
from
Greece to Germany, the proportion of overweight or obese men is higher than
in the U.S., experts said Tuesday in a major analysis of expanding girth on
the
European continent.

Data here :
http://europa.eu.int/comm/health/ph_...ts/iotf_en.pdf