Melbourne|HL
The studies done by researchers of Auckland University of Technology found that about 5.5 billion people – up to 76% of the world’s population – are ‘overfat’, .
According to them the new pandemic had overtaken the planet and argued for a change in global health efforts against chronic and metabolic diseases.
The researchers, put forth a specific notion of overfat, a condition of having sufficient excess body fat to impair health and every 3 in 4 people are obese.
The overfat pandemic has not spared those who exercise or even compete in sports,” said lead author of the study Philip Maffetone, CEO of MAFF Fitness Pty Ltd. “The overfat category includes normal weight people with increased risk factors for chronic disease, such as high abdominal fat, and those with characteristics of a condition called normal-weight metabolic obesity,” said Maffetone.
While the study in Frontiers in Public Health also found out that 9 to 10% of the population may be underfat. “While we think of the condition of underfat as being due to starvation, those numbers are dropping rapidly. However, an ageing population, an increase in chronic disease and a rising number of excessive exercisers or those with anorexia athletica are adding to the number of non-starving underfat individuals.”
This leaves as little as 14% of the world’s population with normal body-fat percentage. While it is estimated that up to 49% of the world’s population, or 3.5 billion people, are obese or overweight.
