ROOTS of Obesity Declaration
We, the signatories to this Declaration, urgently request that national and local governments work to understand the ROOTS of obesity and use them to take more effective action on this disease.
Every government in the world has committed to international targets to address obesity – a chronic disease affecting over 650 million adults and 125 million children and youth worldwide. The targets include a zero increase in obesity prevalence between 2010 and 2025. Despite this commitment, not a single country is on track to meet this goal.
There is no excuse for this inaction. People with obesity require respectful and equitable access to treatment and clinical management services. Those at risk require equitable opportunities for obesity prevention. These actions require systematic, multi-sectoral policy action by each government that recognises and addresses the underlying ROOTS of obesity:
Recognise officially that obesity is a chronic, multifactorial disease as well as a driver of other diseases, with serious implications for individuals, families, societies and economies.
Obesity monitoring and surveillance, and innovative research into the causes and effective strategies for preventing and treating obesity, must be vigorously promoted and supported.
Obesity prevention strategies must be developed, tested and implemented across the life course, from pre-conception, through childhood, and into older age.
Treatment of obesity, using evidence-based, dignified, non-stigmatising and person-centred approaches – including behavioural, pharmacological, digital, nutritional, physical-activity based and surgical interventions – should be accessible to all people with obesity.
Systems-based approaches should be applied to the management of obesity, aimed at strengthening health systems, enabling obesity’s incorporation into primary and secondary care, and addressing the environmental, social and commercial roots of obesity.
Finally, we call on governments and policymakers to join civil society organisations around the world in supporting and promoting 4 March as World Obesity Day, using this day each year as an opportunity to reinforce and recommit each year to greater collective action, to review progress against this Declaration, and to further raise awareness about this serious, chronic disease.
Sign the declaration below and download a copy of the declaration here.