True cost of the UK’s obesity crisis revealed – and how weight-loss jabs could be the answer
How more weight-loss jabs could save the country £53 billion a year
- The UK's obesity crisis costs £107 billion annually, with NHS spending on obesity-related illnesses projected to reach £11.4 billion by 2025.
- Over one in four UK adults are now obese, a figure that has doubled since the 1990s, with the UK having higher rates than most European countries.
- Obesity significantly impacts the economy, leading to £24 billion in lost productivity each year due to unemployment, sick days, and early deaths.
- Experts suggest that expanding the provision of weight-loss jabs to an additional 150,000 people, combined with policy changes on how unhealthy food is sold in supermarkets, could save the UK around £53 billion annually.
- Obesity rates are disproportionately higher in deprived areas and among certain demographic groups, with unhealthy food often being more affordable.