Obesity is a major risk factors for various noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension and stroke, and various forms of cancer. You may be surprised to learn that being overweight or having obesity are linked with a higher risk of getting 13 types of cancer.

People with obesity are constantly shamed and blamed because many - including doctors, policymakers, and others - do not fully understand the root causes of obesity, which are often a complex mixture of dietary, lifestyle, genetic, psychological, sociocultural, economic and environmental factors.