Global obesity is costing the world economy $2 trillion a year in health costs and lower productivity, according to a study from the McKinsey Global Institute. Obesity ranks far more costly than alcoholism, climate change, air pollution, and drug problems. It falls just behind armed conflict and smoking in terms of the most costly human-generated burdens. The financial loss to obesity is equivalent to Russia’s Gross Domestic Product. According to a study published in The Lancet this year, one third of the world’s population was overweight or obese in 2013.
