Jennifer Mendoza
Research expert covering health, pharma and medtech
Obesity and overweight in Italy - Statistics & Facts
Since 1990, obesity among adults more than doubled and quadrupled among adolescents, becoming one of the deadliest risk factors and one of the biggest health problems worldwide, as it increases the likelihood of developing other health conditions and lowers life expectancy. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies an adult as overweight if they have a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 25, and obese if they have a BMI greater than or equal to 30. The body mass index (BMI) is an index that has been commonly used since the ‘70s to assess if a person has an optimal weight or if they are underweight, overweight, or obese. Although limitations of this index have been largely proven, it is still employed to predict individual health. As of 2023, in Italy, around 12 percent of the population was classified as obese, with men accounting for the highest share. The Italian region with the highest share of people considered obese, using the BMI index, was Apulia, with 15 percent, followed by Molise and Basilicata.
Diabetes is only one of the many risk factors associated with obesity, and with the rise of people being overweight and obese across the country, the likelihood of developing comorbidities such as diabetes increases.
Treatment of eating disorders
As of 2021, there were a total of 91 facilities to treat eating disorders (including binge eating, bulimia and anorexia) operated by the National Healthcare Service across the whole Italian territory. Emilia-Romagna was the region hosting the highest number of such facilities, with 16. Across Italy, almost one thousand professionals were working in these facilities, 24 percent of whom psychologists. Child psychiatrists or neuropsychiatrists follow, with overeating leading to obesity being an issue also among children. As a matter of fact, by 2025 the prevalence of obese children in Italy is projected to reach 14.5 percent.Obesity and diabetes
Being overweight or obese is among the main risk factors for type 2 diabetes. As a matter of fact, around 14.1 percent of obese men in Italy had been diagnosed with diabetes as of 2021. In the same year, the prevalence of diabetes among obese women in Italy reached 16.9 percent. The number of people diagnosed with diabetes is expected to increase considerably worldwide, reaching 4.5 million cases in Italy by 2025.Diabetes is only one of the many risk factors associated with obesity, and with the rise of people being overweight and obese across the country, the likelihood of developing comorbidities such as diabetes increases.
