Epidemiology: Obesity – Set to reach pandemic levels as overweight/obese children become adults

Introduction

Increased caloric intake and physical inactivity are the two major prominent risk factors for obesity. Datamonitor epidemiologists expect the number of prevalent cases of childhood overweight (including obesity) to increase in the seven major markets over the next 10 years, driving the increase in adult prevalent cases of overweight and obesity.

Introduction

Gain insight into market potential, including a robust 10-year epidemiology forecast of obesity prevalent cases.
Understand the key epidemiologic risk factors associated with obesity.

Highlights

Datamonitor epidemiologists forecast that in 2010 there were roughly 29 million prevalent cases of overweight (including obesity) among children ages 0–19 in the seven major markets, and approximately 28.69 million cases are predicted for 2020.

The US will have the largest number of prevalent cases of overweight adults over the age of 20, with 75.81 million prevalent cases. However, Japan will also have a considerable burden of overweight adults with 21.60 million overweight adults in 2010.

Obesity prevalence is expected to marginally increase by approximately 1% over the forecast period, from 118.75 million prevalent cases in 2010. Datamonitor epidemiologists forecast that there will be 128.43 million prevalent cases of adult obesity in the seven major markets in 2020.


Highlights

What are the most robust sources for obesity prevalence data?
How will the patient population change over the next decade in the US, Japan, and five major EU markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK)?
How do changes in population structure and risk factors affect the trend in prevalent obesity cases?