Just when Europeans thought they鈥檇 licked heart disease, along come obesity and diabetes to ruin the party. An analysis of 56 countries across Europe, north Africa, and the Middle East suggests rising rates of obesity could聽halt the gains made by tackling heart disease in recent decades.
Between 1985 and 2014, available data shows that death rates from heart disease declined on average by more than 40 per cent across 38 countries. But data from 23 countries shows that, between 1995 and 2014, the prevalence of type-2 diabetes doubled, from 2 to 4 per cent on average. High-income countries have a higher average prevalence 鈥� 5 per cent.
Obesity has also edged up, affecting 23 per cent of people in high-income countries. The UK now has the highest obesity prevalence rate in men 鈥� 27 per cent 鈥� and the second highest in women 鈥� 29 per cent.
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鈥淭he effects of diabetes and obesity will check the decline [in cardiovascular deaths] we鈥檝e seen over the past 50 years,鈥� says , of Queen Mary University of London, who lead the study. 鈥淭he commonest cause of death in people with type-2 diabetes is cardiovascular disease,鈥� he says.
Timmis points to a combination of over-eating and lack of exercise. 鈥淲e eat more calories as we get richer, and I鈥檓 afraid we are doing less exercise now from childhood onwards.鈥�
