1 in 5 people will be obese by 2025, study says

Joshua Berlinger
By Joshua Berlinger, CNN
Updated 6:21 AM EDT, Fri April 1, 2016
The Western diet is spreading across the world. It's characterized by a high intake of red meat, refined sugars and saturated fat -- but little fiber.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Getty Images
The Western diet is spreading across the world. It's characterized by a high intake of red meat, refined sugars and saturated fat -- but little fiber.
A common feature of Western diets is processed fast food. Here's a pepperoni pizza high in fat and carbohydrates and topped with cured, processed meat.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Getty Images
A common feature of Western diets is processed fast food. Here's a pepperoni pizza high in fat and carbohydrates and topped with cured, processed meat.
Candy bars have been highlighted as a key example of processed foods. Ingredients such as fructose and palmitic acid may initiate a low-level immune response in the body, distracting the immune system from other infections.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Thinkstock
Candy bars have been highlighted as a key example of processed foods. Ingredients such as fructose and palmitic acid may initiate a low-level immune response in the body, distracting the immune system from other infections.
Some studies have linked eating too much red meat with a <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2012/03/12/health/red-meat-shorten-lifespan/">shortened life span</a>.<br />
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Comstock
Some studies have linked eating too much red meat with a shortened life span.
Sugary drinks are the epitome of the fast-food diet. Their high sugar content increases the likelihood of obesity, diabetes and other health conditions.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Ferre Dollar/CNN
Sugary drinks are the epitome of the fast-food diet. Their high sugar content increases the likelihood of obesity, diabetes and other health conditions.
The Mediterranean diet is renowned for its health benefits. It contains low levels of red meat, sugar and saturated fats and is high in fish and unsaturated fats such as olive oil, fruits, vegetables and legumes.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
CNN
The Mediterranean diet is renowned for its health benefits. It contains low levels of red meat, sugar and saturated fats and is high in fish and unsaturated fats such as olive oil, fruits, vegetables and legumes.
Diets with little fruit and vegetables can be low in vitamins, minerals and fiber crucial to growth and health.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images
Diets with little fruit and vegetables can be low in vitamins, minerals and fiber crucial to growth and health.
The Japanese diet is also known for its healthy components -- high in soy protein and vegetables.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
Brian Mac
The Japanese diet is also known for its healthy components -- high in soy protein and vegetables.
Diets on the southern Japanese Okinawa Islands contain large amounts of fish, whole grains, soy protein and vegetables.
Photos: Why a Western diet could be bad for you
istockphoto
Diets on the southern Japanese Okinawa Islands contain large amounts of fish, whole grains, soy protein and vegetables.
CNN  — 

The obesity epidemic has gone global, and it may be worse than most thought.

A new study in The Lancet says that if current trends continue, 18% of men and 21% of women will be obese by 2025.

In four decades, global obesity has more than tripled among men and doubled among women, the study says.

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The paper compared body mass index trends from 1975 to 2014 in 200 countries.

Also notable:

• Odds are pretty high that your country has more obese people than underweight ones. More men were obese than underweight in 136 countries, and more women were obese than underweight in 165 of them.

• In 1975, 2.6% of the world’s population was obese; in 2014, that number jumped to 8.9%.

• Obesity prevalence was less than 1% for men in two countries: Burundi and Timor-Leste. For women, Timor-Leste, Japan, Vietnam, North Korea, Cambodia, Laos and Bangladesh all had obesity prevalence under 5%.

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• High-income English-speaking countries (Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States) account for more than a quarter of the world’s severely obese people. Coming in second, though, are the Middle East and North Africa, which is home to 26 million severely obese people, or 13.9% of the world’s severely obese population.

• Forty percent to 50% of women in several Caribbean and Middle Eastern countries are obese.

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• Make way for China. In 1975, China was 60th and 41st for severely obese men and women, respectively. In 2014, it was second for both.

• The United States still takes the cake. More than one in four severely obese men and one in five severely obese women lives in the country. By 2025, the study estimates, 43% of women and 45% of men in the United States will be obese.

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• What chance does the United States have to stop the rise of obesity by 2025? Zero, the study says.

Find out here what the study projects for your country.

A previous version of this story incorrectly reported the range of time in which the study compared body mass index trends. The correct range is from 1975 to 2014.