Obesity rates are set to soar, with one in six children and adolescents worldwide forecast to be obese by 2050, according to a new study published in The Lancet. The forecast equates to 356 million children aged 5-14 years and 390 million aged 15-24 years, with one in six facing obesity.

The UAE, Cook Islands, Nauru and Tonga are forecast to have the highest prevalence, while China, Egypt, India and the US will have the greatest number of children and adolescents with obesity by 2050. However, the researchers stressed that urgent action now could turn the tide on the public health crisis.

Prof Susan Sawyer of the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, who carried out the study, warned that governments must invest in multicomponent strategies that reduce obesity drivers, across food and drink, activity, lifestyle and the built environment.