writer: Kurt Zindulka

"echinawire.com"





China is now home to the most obese people in the world, a new study by the Lancet Medical Journal revealed this week. China jumps from number two on the list in 2014 to number one this year, finally surpassing the United States as the country with the most obese people.





China is still well behind the United States percentage wise, however the numbers still aren’t too flattering for China. China currently is home to 43,200,000 obese men and 46,400,000 obese women. Obesity is defined by a body mass index of 30 or over, which measures a person’s weight against his or her height.





As a result of this weight gain China has seen a dramatic increase in weight related diseases, particularly diabetes. It is estimated that one third of the world's diabetic population is in China.







What is staggering is that Asians seem to be disproportionately affected by diabetes. The Asian Diabetes Prevention Initiative said that this is because Asian people will tend to amass more fat around their organs than their European counterpart with the same body mass index.





China, as well as many other countries around the world, is struggling with the increased luxury of the modern world, as well as a diet relying too much on heavily processed foods.





Feng Lei the co-founder of the Dainfeng Weightless Center in Shanghai told the Global Times that “Most Chinese dishes feature high amounts of oil and salt, and Chinese people still like to eat packaged food or fast food, which can cause the body to secrete less insulin, and result in weight gain. Also, most Chinese people, especially those from smaller cities, haven't formed regular workout habits.”







