By NU.nl news editors[1].
The RIVM expects 64 percent of Dutch people to be overweight by 2050. In 2022, the figure was 50 percent. This is stated in the report Public Health Future Outlook of the RIVM.
In every age group, the number of people who are overweight is increasing. That increase is strongest in the 18- to 44-year-old group.
According to the RIVM, obesity also starts earlier and earlier. In 1990, 17 percent of 20- to 29-year-olds were still overweight; by 2020 it will be 32 percent. This trend is expected to continue.
The RIVM will publish a comprehensive four-year report on the future of Dutch health on Wednesday, but already released some results Monday morning. Earlier, based on the report, the institute reported that by 2050 the number of chronically ill people will be nearly 12 million. Dementia and osteoarthritis will be twice as common then as they are now.
Six years ago, the government presented an ambitious National Prevention Agreement to address obesity. But this plan appears to have little effect, experts already noted. They argue that everything in The Hague takes too much time, such as the discussion about a reduction in VAT rates on fruit and vegetables that politicians have been arguing about for a long time.
[1] (2024, Oct. 25). If we do nothing, 2 in 3 Dutch people will be too fat by 2050, according to RIVM. NU.nl.
