Obesity triples over 30 years, affects one in four adult Brazilians
The prevalence of obesity among adults in Brazil more than tripled from 1990 to 2023. The study is part of the Global Burden of Disease series and shows that, among adults aged 25 and older, the prevalence rose from 7.8 to 27.7 percent over the course of three decades.
According to the study, published this month on the Lancet website, Brazil had the highest increase among the 17 Latin American countries surveyed.
When all cases of excess weight – including being overweight and obesity – are combined, the prevalence rose from 40.3 percent in 1990 to 66.8 percent in 2023. In other words, two out of three Brazilians were above the normal weight for their height.
Along with Colombia, Brazil was the nation with the highest growth in the proportion of the population that was overweight (69%)...