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Nesta is an innovation foundation. For us, innovation means turning bold ideas into reality and changing lives for the better. We use our expertise, skills and funding in areas where there are big challenges facing society.

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A healthy life - the key statistics

Our ambitious mission – to increase healthy life expectancy while narrowing health inequalities – is underpinned by this evidence

In A healthy life

In the UK around two-thirds of people are living with excess weight and obesity. The proportion of people living with these conditions is broadly consistent across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
In the last 30 years, the number of adults in England living with obesity has almost doubled.
People living with obesity and excess weight are much more likely to develop a range of chronic health conditions which range from cancer and diabetes to depression.
Obesity reduces quality of life and takes away people’s freedom to live well, by reducing the number of years they can expect to live without illness.
Between England’s regions, there's almost seven years difference in how long people live in good health. Between local authorities, this gap rises to 18 years. You’re much more likely to be in poor health if you live in a deprived area. Obesity is one of the conditions most likely to hold back people’s health: the government will not close this gap without tackling it.
Obesity is crippling our NHS, costing it more than £19 billion a year across the UK – this is double the amount spent on GP primary care services each year in England alone.
Obesity and excess weight is not just a crisis for adults – levels of childhood obesity in the UK are among the highest rates in Europe. Children born since 1990 in England are three times as likely to be obese.
Halving the level of obesity in our population would mean nearly eight million more people in the UK being able to enjoy a long and healthy life; we’d return to obesity levels we last saw in the UK in the mid-1990s.
Nesta calculates that obesity could be cut in half in three years if the daily calorie intake of those with excess weight was reduced by 8.5%. This equates to removing around 216 calories - or one chocolate bar - from the daily intake of people who are overweight or obese.
This is a small, almost imperceptible change – a person’s calorie intake varies from day to day by much more than this amount.
A majority of the British public wants to lose weight and backs government action to make food healthier.
Around three-quarters of the British public support government action to tackle obesity, and a majority want to see the government take bolder action to shape healthier food environments.

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A healthy life - the key statistics

About Nesta

A healthy life - the key statistics

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A healthy life - the key statistics

About Nesta

A healthy life - the key statistics

Also of interest

UPF and HFSS – different labels, same foods?

Case for additional regulation of ultra-processed food is weak at present, new analysis finds

Exploring ways to ensure people can afford a healthy diet

Stay up to date

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