Nearly one-third of women across Latin America, Caribbean suffer obesity: FAO

Twenty-nine percent women and 18 percent men in Latin America and the Caribbean suffer obesity, Director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Jose Graziano da Silva said Tuesday.

Speaking at the FAO's 34th Regional Conference in Mexico City, Graziano da Silva warned that the region is seeing a rapid rise in obesity, with around 22 percent of adults now suffering from the disease.

Furthermore, he said that obesity now affects 7 percent of the children under five in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Besides, Graziano da Silva said chronic malnutrition among children affects over 20 percent children in certain countries, including Mexico. But he praised the region for having reduced child malnutrition by 12.9 percent in the last 25 years.

At the end of the speech, the director-general said the FAO and its members in the region should work together to continue to improve nutrition and sustainable agriculture. Enditem