Seminar – Tackling Obesity in Europe: How to Fight an Emerging Crisis?

Europe is facing an obesity crisis of epidemic proportions, one that threatens to overwhelm the EU’s already struggling economies and place a tremendous burden on its healthcare systems. It is a health challenge that cuts into many areas beyond healthcare, including the single market, regulation, trade and the economy. Yet, policymakers appear divided over how to confront the continent’s weight issue; some campaigners say policymakers are failing to recognise the scope of the problem. In a new study, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has studied the current national and EU-level approaches to obesity policy, and identified the weaknesses in current efforts. Furthermore, it discusses novel strategies for how policy can be adapted to more effectively confront the scale of the obesity problem. And it prompts the question – for policymakers as well as medical professionals – what can we do to tackle obesity in Europe?