Britain's obesity crisis is costing every taxpayer more than £400 a year - and taking an average of three lives off our lives, international research shows.

Experts said the study of 52 countries by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) was a “alarm call” about the scale of the damage caused by bulging waistlines.

The research is the first major study to calculate the economic burden of obesity, in terms of lost productivity, sick leave and early retirement, as well as its impact on health.

Britain has the highest rate of obesity of any major nation in Western Europe, with rates rising even faster than those of the United States.

The study estimates that the UK’s economy takes a hit of around 3.4 per cent annually as a result. The lost time is the equivalent of almost 1 million full-time workers.

Across all countries assessed, Britain is in the worst third for lost labour output, while costing every person an extra £409 a year, in taxes, researchers found.

And conditions fuelled by excess weight are soaking up more than 8 per cent of health expenditure, while cutting life expectancy by 2.7 years on average.

The findings follow calls from the country’s departing Chief Medical Officer to ban eating or drinking on public transport.