The U.K. is on the brink of an obesity epidemic, one that will cost as much as additional $90 billion per year by 2050, says a study released Wednesday.

The Foresight Report, a government-led research project, says that by 2050, 60 per cent of adult men, 50 per cent of adult women and about 25 per cent of all children under 18 could be obese.

Many climate change goals would help prevent obesity, such as measures to reduce traffic congestion, increase cycling or design sustainable communities, reads the report.
(CBC)

"Britain has become a nation where overweight is the norm," reads the report.

A person with a Body Mass Index of over 30 is considered obese. Anyone with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight, while a normal range is 18.5 to 24.9, says Health Canada.

These ranges can be adjusted for athletes or those people with very small or large frames.

According to the World Health Organization, 23 per cent of the U.K. population is obese — a threefold increase since 1980. The country's national audit office estimates that obesity costs England 18 million sick days and 30,000 excess deaths a year. 

'Britain has become a nation where overweight is the norm.'— Foresight Report

Those absences from work and premature deaths are costly, accounting for an estimated $6.6 billion to $7.3 billion in annual loss of earnings, according to the House of Commons health committee.

The report also notes that obesity increases the risk of chronic diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, stroke , coronary heart disease, cancer and arthritis, which in turn results in higher drug use among obese patients. U.S. analysts calculate that obese people spend an extra 36 per cent per year in health-care costs and an average 77 per cent more on medications.

The study says the obesity epidemic has been a long time coming.

"The prevalence of obesity in the population has been at least 30 years in the making," it reads. This will take time to reverse and it will be 30 years before reductions in associated diseases are seen."

And the report draws parallels between climate change and obesity.

"Both need whole societal change with cross governmental action and long-term commitment. Many climate change goals would also help prevent obesity, such as measures to reduce traffic congestion, increase cycling or design sustainable communities," it reads.

According to WHO, over a billion people worldwide are overweight and at least 300 million are obese.