Epidemiological Dynamics of Obesity and Chronic Diseases
Summary
Obesity and chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disorders and certain cancers have surged globally, arising from multifaceted interactions among genetic predisposition, environmental change, behaviour and socio-economic development. Epidemiological dynamics capture variations in obesity prevalence across age groups, regions and income levels, highlighting the impact of urbanisation, sedentary lifestyles and the nutrition transition towards energy-dense processed foods. The relaxation of historical selective pressures has permitted accumulation of metabolic risk alleles, while shifts in dietary patterns and physical activity exacerbate energy imbalance. Surveillance systems and mathematical models reveal temporal trends and spatial disparities, identifying high-risk populations and informing public health interventions. The interplay of obesity with metabolic syndrome accelerates the onset of chronic conditions, amplifying healthcare burdens. Effective strategies combine regulatory policies, urban planning that promotes active travel, behavioural change programmes and early-life prevention. A global perspective underscores the need for equitable access to healthy diets and opportunities for physical activity to reverse current trajectories and reduce the intertwined epidemics of obesity and chronic disease.
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Epidemiological Dynamics of Obesity and Chronic Diseases publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in epidemiological dynamics of obesity and chronic diseases across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Epidemiological dynamics: Study of patterns, causes and effects of health and disease conditions in defined populations.
Body Mass Index (BMI): A person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in metres, used to classify underweight, normal weight, overweight and obesity.
Prevalence: Proportion of individuals in a population who have a specific condition at a given point in time.
Biological State Index (Ibs): A measure of the opportunity for natural selection operating in a human population, based on mortality and fertility rates.
Nutrition transition: Shift in dietary consumption and energy expenditure patterns, typically from traditional diets to Westernised, processed-food diets rich in fats and sugars.
References
- Worldwide Increase of Obesity Is Related to the Reduced Opportunity for Natural Selection. PLOS ONE (2017).
- Relaxed natural selection contributes to global obesity increase more in males than in females due to more environmental modifications in female body mass. PLOS ONE (2018).
- Increasing variability of body mass and health correlates in Swiss conscripts, a possible role of relaxed natural selection?. Evolution Medicine and Public Health (2018).
- The Relationship of Sugar to Population-Level Diabetes Prevalence: An Econometric Analysis of Repeated Cross-Sectional Data. PLOS ONE (2013).
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