European Health Interview Survey

The Eurostat unveiled a set of statistics in October 2016 showing that almost one adult in six in the European Union is considered obese. It also shows that the share of obesity increases with age and decreases with education level.

While 46.1% of those aged 18 or over living in the EU had a normal weight in 2014, slightly more than half of the adults (51.6%) were considered as over-weight (35.7% pre-obese and 15.9% obese) and a further 2.3% as under-weight. In other words, nearly 1 in every 6 persons aged 18 or over in the EU was obese in 2014. Obesity is a serious public health problem that can be statistically measured using the Body Mass Index(BMI) of adults. Obesity is defined as a BMI of 30 or over.

• Primary Source

EurActiv, 21.10.16: Malta tops EU obesity rankings, Romania thinnest http://www.euractiv.com/section/health-consumers/news/malta-tops-eu-obesity-rankings-romania-thinnest/

ESO: Background information: Obesity Policy In The EU http://www.europeansources.info/record/obesity-policy-in-the-eu/

EUObserver, 21.10.16: Malta, Latvia, and Hungary top EU obesity charts https://euobserver.com/social/135599

Euronews, 20.10.16: Which is the most obese country in the EU? http://www.euronews.com/2016/10/20/which-is-the-most-obese-country-in-the-eu

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