UK launches new obesity institute to investigate causes and treatments for Brits’ bulging waistlines

A UK Obesity Research Institute has been set up to study our bulging waistlines. Labs will be funded with up to £72million of taxpayer cash to investigate the causes, effects and treatments of excess flab. A £72m UK obesity research centre has been launched to investigate what’s driving Britain’s spiralling weight crisis Credit: Getty ‘The UK Obesity Research Institute will bring together world-leading expertise to tackle this challenge from multiple angles’, says Professor Patrick Chinnery, of the state-funded Medical Research Council Credit: UKRI About three in 10 Brits are dangerously fat and another third are overweight. Experts say tackling obesity is no longer as simple as exercising and eating healthily, as it has become hard-wired into millions of people. Sign up for the Health newsletter Thank you! Professor Patrick Chinnery, of the state-funded Medical Research Council, said: “Obesity-related illness costs the NHS £6billion annually and is a leading cause of preventable premature death. “But obesity is not simply a matter of excess body fat or eating too much. “It is a complex biological condition involving genetics, hormones, the brain, metabolism, behaviour and the environment. “The UK Obesity Research Institute will bring together world-leading expertise to tackle this challenge from multiple angles.” The institute will fund and help research teams investigating obesity and its health effects. Hospital admissions connected to obesity are rising and it is a driving force behind increasing cancers, heart diseases and dementia. Most read in Health Super-sized people have been found to take more sick days off work and around half a million Brits are out of a job because of their weight. Weight loss jabs like Wegovy and Mounjaro are the biggest treatment breakthrough in decades, with around four million people estimated to have taken them. The British Heart Foundation will help to run the institute. Chief medical officer at the charity, Prof Bryan Johnson, said: “Obesity is a complex condition that is too often misunderstood, yet it is one of the biggest drivers of heart disease and stroke. “It is vital that we improve our understanding of how it impacts our national health. “The institute will accelerate the development of new ways to prevent and treat it, ultimately helping more people to live in good health for longer.” Comment now