The most comprehensive study of global obesity rates ever undertaken appears to suggest that we are losing the battle against this major health issue.

According to the findings, there has been a major increase in rates of both overweight and obesity in adults and children worldwide and no country has recorded a significant decline in obesity rates over the last 33 years.

The number of overweight and obese people has risen from 857 million in 1980 to 2.1 billion in 2013. Overweight and obesity rates have jumped by 28% among adults and a startling 47% among children.

In Ireland, 26% of boys and 26% of girls under the age of 20 are classed as overweight or obese. Almost 7% of boys and just over 7% of girls under the age of 20 are specifically classed as obese.

In men over the age of 20, two in three (66%) are now classed as overweight or obese. Almost 23% are specifically obese. Almost 51% of women over the age of 20 are overweight or obese. More than 22% of these are obese.

The study, which is published in the medical journal, The Lancet, notes that rates of obesity vary globally and over half of the world's 671 million obese people live in just 10 countries - the US, China, India, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Egypt, Germany, Pakistan and Indonesia.

The findings are based on a comprehensive analysis of worldwide figures relating to adults aged 20 and older and children aged between two and 19. They reveal that:
-Men have higher rates of obesity than women in the developed world, but women have higher rates in developing countries
-The biggest gain in overweight and obesity took place globally between 1992 and 2002. This occurred mainly in people aged between 20 and 40.
-Particularly high rates of overweight and obesity have already been reached in Tonga, where at least 50% of men and women are already obese.

"Unlike other major global health risks, such as tobacco and childhood nutrition, obesity is not decreasing worldwide. Our findings show that increases in the prevalence of obesity have been substantial, widespread, and have arisen over a short time," commented lead researcher, Prof Emmanuela Gakidou, of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in the US.

However, she pointed out that there is ‘some evidence of a plateau in adult obesity rates that provides some hope that the epidemic might have peaked in some developed countries'.

She said that the UN target to stop the rise in obesity by 2025 is ‘very ambitious' and is ‘unlikely to be achieved' unless major action is taken.

"In particular, urgent global leadership is needed to help low and middle-income countries intervene to reduce excessive calorie intake, physical inactivity, and active promotion of food consumption by industry," she added.