Three in four in excess of-65s overweight

The typical BMI among people aged between 45 and 74 it is 28.three. Photograph: Alamy

A growing obesity epidemic amid older individuals will lead to a lot more more than-65s struggling heart problems, arthritis and breathing troubles, doctors say, as figures demonstrate nearly 3-quarters of individuals of retirement age are overweight or obese.

The knock-on impact could show so great that it may reverse the lengthy-established trend in the direction of lengthening daily life expectancy and shorten the time older people live cost-free of sickness or disability.

NHS figures show that five.eight million above-65s are obese or obese – an increase of 800,000 between 2003 and 2012.

Broken down by age groups, 73% of individuals in the 55-64 and 65-74 classes are overweight, followed by 72% of 45- to 54-year-olds and 70% of those aged 75 or above, in accordance to data from the NHS’s Well being and Social Care Info Centre (HSCIC).

The only age group in England the place the common body mass index is below 25 – the stage at which somebody is classed as obese, with thirty and above becoming obese – is sixteen-24. The typical BMI amongst the 16-24 group is 24.5, and among people aged among 45 and 74 it is 28.3.

Professor Martin Severs, consultant geriatrician at Portsmouth’s Queen Alexandra hospital and HSCIC lead clinician, stated the extent of extra fat amongst in excess of-65s would deliver about a host of health problems.

“Weight problems is going to have a whole lot of brief- to medium-phrase effects around diabetes and heart condition. And then you have acquired long-phrase problems simply because your physique will be carrying close to a whole lot far more bodyweight, you then go on to endure issues this kind of as arthritis and getting trouble breathing,” he said.

Tam Fry, a spokesman for the National Weight problems Forum, stated a lot of overweight older people were in a catch-22 scenario due to the fact health difficulties linked to their excess weight and muscle wastage meant they could not simply take physical exercise.

Ruthe Isden, wellness influencing programme director at Age Uk, stated only a tiny proportion of over-65s, like four% of over-75s, exercised sufficient.

An HSCIC report laid out how older folks account for ever-better proportions of emergency admissions to hospital, mental wellness care, outpatient visits, hospital bed use, drug prescriptions and attendance at A&ampE units.

For instance, above-65s – who make up 1-sixth of the population – use 60% of all medication dispensed and account for 54% of stays in hospital. In excess of-85s make up two% of the population and account for 18% of hospital bed days.

More positively, healthy daily life expectancy is increasing in tandem with increasing life expectancy, which now stands at 83 for men and 86 for females, up from 78 and 82 respectively in 1982.

Fewer older people are building heart illness or obtaining a stroke, partly linked to becoming the age group least probably to smoke.

A Department of Well being spokesperson explained: “Weight problems impacts all age groups and there is no magic bullet to resolve the issue. It is going to consider continued effort from all of us – government, neighborhood communities, business and men and women – to reverse this trend.”

Three in four in excess of-65s overweight