Expanding waistlines are better measure of nation’s obesity crisis than BMI

If your trousers or skirts seem to be getting tighter you are not alone: almost 40% of men and women are now becoming obese in old age. The University of Glasgow team, which included Antonis Vlassopoulos, Dr Emilie Combet and Professor Mike Lean, examined data from the Health Survey of England and the Scottish Health Survey comparing the periods of 1994-96 and 2008-10. Between these two periods, the prevalence of individuals with a BMI greater than 30 - considered 'obese'- increased by 5-15%on average, reaching a peak at age 60-70 with 35-38% being obese in both sexes. This peak prevalence happens five to 10 years later than previously observed in 1994-96 for men, and unchanged for women. Between the two dates, mean BMI at all ages and for both sexes in England and Scotland increased significantly, as did the prevalence of BMIs above 25 (overweight) and 30 (obese). Even at a younger age, there was a marked increase in BMI and waist size. In England, in young men aged 18-22, the prevalence of a waist size greater than 102cm (40 inches) more than doubled, from 4.6% to 10.