Adverse health effects of obesity highlighted

23/05/05 It has been estimated that the prevalence of adult obesity across the EU ranges from 10-25% and may be as high as 30%. Many more people are overweight, and the prevalence continues to rise. The British Nutrition Foundation is aiming to address the issue of the adverse effect on health that obesity can have.

The storage of excess fat increases an individual’s risk of developing risk factors for life threatening diseases such as cardiovascular disease (CVD). A number of these risk factors, including abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, low HDL cholesterol, high blood triglycerides and raised blood pressure, are now recognized as manifestations of the metabolic syndrome when they occur together.

The metabolic syndrome, in turn, poses a risk to health:• people with metabolic syndrome have a five fold greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, which is becoming more common in line with obesity trends • people with metabolic syndrome are twice as likely to die from CVD and three times as likely to have a heart attack or stroke compared to people without the syndrome. Several of these symptoms usually require treatment with prescription drugs.

With an estimated 25% of the adult population in some EU member states being affected by the metabolic syndrome, this is resulting in huge costs to the healthcare system, or to individuals themselves in those countries with a healthcare system that is not free to the user. These costs are set to rise, as an estimated 31 million people across Europe will need treatment for diabetes and related complications by 2010 – just one of the conditions associated with the metabolic syndrome.No single treatment for the metabolic syndrome as a whole exists yet, but we know that lifestyle changes, for example changes in diet and an increase in physical activity, form the underlying strategy for both prevention and treatment.

Specific approaches to managing the metabolic syndrome are being considered within the EU funded Lipgene project, including ways in which to make it easier for people to eat a diet which can benefit cardiovascular health, and therefore reduce their risk of developing the metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes and CVD. For example methods to modify the composition of dietary fat, namely the proportions of saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, long chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and the amount of trans fatty acids in foods destined for human consumption are being considered by agro-food technologists. The economic implications and consumer acceptability of this approach are also being considered.