26% of adults classed as obese
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Ireland has the second highest rate of obesity in the eu with more than a quarter of the adult population classified as overweight, according to european Commission figures.
According to the Eurostat report, 26% of Irish adults in 2019 were obese, with only Malta having a higher rate at 28%, above the EU average of 16%.
Ireland was ranked 7th with an obesity rate of 18% when a similar survey was previously carried out in 2014.
People on the border in Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan and Sligo – are most likely to be overweight or obese.
The figures show 59% of adults in these counties are overweight with 30% obese.
Meanwhile, residents in the West – Galway, Mayo and Roscommon – and Cork and Kerry in the South West have the lowest overweight rates at 53% and lowest obese rate at 23%.
Meanwhile, we fare better in people considered overweight – a combination of obese and pre-obese individuals.
With 56% of adults in the Republic classified as overweight, it ranks Ireland towards the middle of the 27 EU countries with the highest share of overweight adults found in Croatia and Malta with 64%.
In contrast, the lowest share was in Italy and France with 45% of adults overweight.
People are considered overweight if they have a Body Mass Index – a measure of a person’s body fat based on their weight relative to their height – of 25 or more.
Adults with a BMI of 30 or higher are considered obese, while a BMI in the range 18.5-25 is classified as normal.
Overall, the Eurostat figures which contain the first results of the European Health Interview Survey show more than half of all adults in the EU are overweight.
Increasing
The European Commission said weight issues are increasing at a rapid rate in most EU states.
A Eurostat spokesperson said obesity is a public health problem as it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, Type-2 diabetes, hypertension and cancers.
He added: “For specific individuals, obesity may be further linked to a wide range of psychological problems.”
In Ireland, 61% of males are overweight compared to 49% of females.
However, there is little difference in obesity rates with 26% of Irish men and 25% of Irish women considered obese.
With the exception of people aged 75 and over, the older the group, the higher the share of overweight people in the EU.
The same trend is also followed in Ireland where the healthiest are those between 18 to 24 with 40% overweight rising to 61.5% among those aged 45 to 64 years.
The highest rate of obesity in Ireland is found among people aged 65-74 with 32% classified.