Obesity is considered an ever-growing global health challenge with 12.5% of the worldwide population considered obese compared to 5% in 1975. This drastic increase is a result of diet and lifestyle habits changing and is having direct and detrimental impacts on human health.

A person is considered obese if they have a body mass index (BMI) over 30. However, BMI is an imprecise measure of obesity because it does not differentiate between different types of fat or lean mass that both exert effects on human health.

It is the accumulation of abdominal fat, and specifically deep visceral fat mass (VFM) in the abdominal cavity, that has the most detrimental consequences on health. VFM accumulation is a major risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic disease and cancer.

A poor diet and sedentary lifestyle can increase a person’s VFM and BMI leading to poor health outcomes.

The human gut is home to trillions of bacteria forming a complex ecosystem, called the microbiota and a person’s diet can influence the composition of this. Changing dietary habits and the corresponding shifts in the gut microbiota are contributors to the growing obesity pandemic.