Obesity: key points

• Obesity is recognised both as a complex disease in its own right and as a risk factor for other non-communicable diseases such as cancer, Type 2 Diabetes and decreases life expectancy. 

• People who live with obesity often experience stigma and discrimination, which is associated with worsening health outcomes. 

• In 2020, almost two thirds (63%) of the adult population (16 years +) were categorised as "Overweight including obesity".

• For adults, Average BMI has risen steadily and significantly over the 24-year period between 1995 – 2019, By 2019 almost two-thirds of adults were within overweight or obese classifications.

•  There is an inequality in obesity risk with people who live in communities marginalised by poverty at an increased risk. Average BMI is patterned by level of deprivation with those from the most deprived areas consistently showing higher BMIs compared to the least deprived

• For children in Scotland, risk of obesity, at primary 1 has been around 10% for the last 20years, though rates have fluctuated.

• Risk of obesity for boys and girls varied by deprivation quintile in 2016. In boys, risk of obesity was highest in the two most deprived quintiles.  In girls, the risk of obesity was highest in the two least deprived quintiles.

• Scotland has among the highest levels of obesity prevalence for men and women among OECD countries.

• Estimates of the cost of obesity to Scotland put the total economic cost at as much as £4.6 billion per year in 2014.