The WHO is alarmed by an “epidemic” of overweight and obesity in Europe. It would cause more than 1.2 million deaths per year according to the World Health Organization. “We have really seen an explosion of cases of early obesity, overweight”, explained on franceinfo Tuesday, May 3, Pierre Dechelotte, professor and head of the nutrition department of the Rouen University Hospital. In particular, he notices among students an increase in “rate of eating disorders such as bulimia or binge eating disorder.”
franceinfo: The Covid-19 pandemic has worsened the situation. Do you notice it?
Pierre Dechelotte: Yes quite. We’ve really seen an explosion of early obesity, overweight. We have been able to see in three years, since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, that our students have really increased their body size and that the rate of eating disorders such as bulimia or binge eating, which we know leads to to obesity, has increased dramatically. This is almost a doubling compared to similar surveys three years ago.
How do you explain it and why does it affect students?
It’s multifactorial, but we can think that there was both increased stress due to the cessation of classes, uncertainty about exams, the professional future, etc. The poverty of social life during this period was also very stressful and therefore there was a withdrawal into oneself with disturbed eating behavior patterns. Nibbling too, compulsions, all alone at home. Perhaps also long-term effects that will have to be analyzed on the change in our environment, perhaps in the intestinal microbiota and several causes that add up.
Among the solutions mentioned by the World Health Organization, there is this idea of taxing sugary drinks, to fight against advertising. We already do that in France with the “Nutriscore”. But we see that it does not work?
It still works better and better. If we want to detail France a little in this very worrying picture in Europe, France has seen its obesity rate increase a little more, but it seems that it has increased a little less in recent years compared to what it was. on the latest survey available to us at national level. Between 2000, 2012 and 2020, we went from 15% to 17% of the French adult population who are obese, so it’s still rising but it’s rising slower than in other countries, especially in eastern Europe. , which are extremely affected. I think “Nutriscore” is part of the solution. Of course, that doesn’t solve everything. But in terms of information and awareness of food choices, in terms of frequency and quantity, I think it helps. But of course, all this is a set of measures that must be put in place in prevention and especially in management right now, because prevention has delayed effects.