Nearly one in two French people is overweight and the obesity rate has doubled in the space of 30 years in France. This is what a study by the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) and the Montpellier University Hospital reminds us.
Overweight affects 47% of French people, and obesity affects 17% of adults. These 2020 figures (which are the latest available) also show regional differences: obesity concerns Hauts-de-France and Grand-Est more than Île-de-France, Pays de Loire or Sud- East.
But overall, these figures draw a worrying French trajectory, explains Annick Fontbonne, researcher at Inserm, who co-directed this study* presented on Monday February 20: “The French have for a long time kept a more or less normal weight compared to all their European neighbors, but here we have a slope which apparently is steeper than that described by the WHO for the Europe region.” This rise in obesity is particularly marked among young French people, aged 18-34. Since 1997, obesity among 18-24 year olds has more than quadrupled, and almost three times among 25-34 year olds. With the key, an increase in the long-term risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and many forms of cancer.
This increase in obesity in France is explained above all by diet, more than by the lack of exercise, say these researchers. The problem is the increase in the share of industrial foods in menus, because one gram of ultra-processed food has a higher caloric density than the same food prepared at home.
Obviously, behind this recourse to prepared meals, there is the question of purchasing power and lack of time. This is why the researchers insist on the role of public policies, which must help the French to make healthier food choices. The nutri-score is a good thing, but it is not enough.
A new generation of treatments
Alongside surgical solutions, reserved for cases of severe obesity, there is currently a new generation of treatments arriving. These drugs (already known in the treatment of diabetes) mimic the action of certain intestinal hormones and help reduce appetite. Clinical trials show encouraging effects with a loss that can exceed 10% of total weight, but doctors still lack perspective on side effects. Other safety data are awaited before the marketing of these new drugs to treat obesity.
The Obepi-Roche study for the League Against Obesity is based on figures collected by Odoxa. Online survey conducted between September 24 and October 5, 2020 on a representative sample of French people aged 18 and over, quota method.