研究发现胖子已比体重营养不良者多

Study: More Obese¹ People Than Underweight 研究发现胖子已比体重营养不良者多

A new report says there are now more obese people in the world than there are underweight people.

Researchers from Imperial College London wrote the report. Their findings were published in the British medical journal The Lancet.

The researchers examined health records from about 20 million people for what they called the “world’s biggest obesity² study.”

Obesity is a condition in which the body stores large, unhealthy amounts of fat. Obese individuals are considered overweight.

For the study, the researchers compared the body measurements of almost 20 million adults. They found that from 1975 to 2014, global obesity rates for men increased from 3.2 percent of the population to 10.8 percent. For women, it rose from 6.4 percent to 14.9 percent.

They estimate that in 2014 there were 266 million obese men and 375 million obese women worldwide. That represents about 9 percent of the more than 7 billion people alive today.

The study found that more than 2.3 percent of men and 5 percent of women are considered severely³ obese. A severely obese individual has a body mass index (or BMI) of over 35 kilograms per square meter. BMI is a way to measure a person’s height compared to their weight.

The study also found that about 1 percent of men and 2 percent of women are considered “morbidly⁴ obese.” Such people have difficulty with simple activities because they are overweight. The researchers say there are now 55 million morbidly obese adults worldwide.

Majid Ezzati is the chief writer of the report. He works at the Imperial College School of Public Health.

He writes that “the number of people across the globe whose weight poses a serious threat to their health is greater than ever before. He adds that this epidemic⁵ of severe obesity is too extensive to be tackled with just medications.

He says coordinated⁶ global initiatives are needed to tackle this crisis. These initiatives include looking at the “price of healthy food compared to unhealthy food, or taxing high sugar and highly-processed foods.”

The researchers warn if the problem of obesity worsens, 18 percent of men and 21 percent of women will be obese by 2025.

The study found that China has the most obese people of any country and the United States has the largest number of severely obese people.

The researchers also studied the number of people who are said to be underweight in different countries. They said underweight levels have dropped from 14 percent to 9 percent among men, and from 15 percent to 10 percent among women.

About a fourth of the world’s underweight people live in India and Bangladesh.

Words in This Story

obese – adj. very fat; fat in a way that is unhealthy

morbidly – adv. relating to death

pose – v. to be or create (a possible threat, danger, problem, etc.)

epidemic – n. an occurrence in which a disease spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people

extensive – adj. large in size or amount; very full or complete

tackle – v. to deal with (something difficult)

1 obese   

adj.过度肥胖的，肥大的

参考例句：

• The old man is really obese,it can't be healthy.那位老人确实过于肥胖了，不能算是健康。
• Being obese and lazy is dangerous to health.又胖又懒危害健康。

2 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

3 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

4 morbidly   

adv.病态地

参考例句：

• As a result, the mice became morbidly obese and diabetic. 结果，老鼠呈现为病态肥胖和糖尿病。 来自互联网
• He was morbidly fascinated by dead bodies. 他对尸体着魔到近乎病态的程度。 来自互联网

5 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

6 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法