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The global obesity epidemic 

Rich or poor, young or old, everyone everywhere lives with concerns about food, diet and eating. We eat too much, too little, too late or too often, and we are told that we frequently consume the wrong things - sugar, fat and salt, meat products, carbohydrates, processed and pre-prepared foods.... One development is rapidly and consistently rising obesity levels in both developed and less developed nations: this is a global obesity epidemic (see a world map of obesity).

On every continent individuals, families, communities, employers, and governments are struggling to live with, plan for, and treat ever increasing obesity. In the UK, obesity levels have more than doubled in the last 25 years and estimates that over half the population will be obese by 2050 are considered too low.

Although levels of obesity are growing not decreasing, we have no clear solutions for those affected, and so the problem continues to grow.

Why take this course?

This course helps participants to find answers to the questions:

• What does obesity mean to different people who have lived with it now or in the past?
• How and why is weight gain and obesity such a problem for so many people today?
• Why doesn't the contemporary problem of obesity fit inside today's healthcare system
• What strategies and practices will help in solving the obesity crisis?

Everyone is invited to share their knowledge and experience so that together we can:

• better understand the many different reasons why so many people encounter weight gain and obesity;
• develop just as many different solutions as there are individuals who need them.​

In this CCH MOOC you will be able to learn about the different causes and consequences of obesity by selecting topics that are relevant to you, whether you are:

• living with obesity: yourself or in a family member; or
• working with obesity -- as a healthcare professional, carer, employer, employee or an obesity care specialist.

The goal is for everyone to share what they know.

Topics

The CCH MOOC offers you the opportunity to explore topics and to complete activities that will increase your understanding of the obesity problem, using video, audio, reading material and interactive tasks.

In week one and in week three you can select the topics which interest you most, including:

• The Causes of Obesity -- topics such as fat gain, BMI, prenatal issues, lifestyle, genetics, fast food, childhood and schools, and lack of activity and sedentary behaviours.
• The Consequences of Obesity -- including the stigma of obesity, financial costs, health consequences, endocrine problems, and fat types and levels.
• Solutions available to prevent and reduce obesity -- such as dietary changes, physical activity, stress reduction, control of food addiction and emotional eating, and wider issues such as government policies, food taxes, town planning, and walkable neighbourhoods.

You will be invited to:

• participate in The National Conversation about obesity and offer your comments, votes, and add topics for discussion including recent media (such as an airline charging passengers by weight in Samoa, New Zealand banning immigration applications from the obese, and British authorities recommending a tax on sugar and removing children from the family home because of food abuse);
• explore and evaluate current definitions of obesity and global obesity trends;
• present the personal meaning and experience of obesity using a video, poem, music, art, a story, an audio, a collage, or other literary and artistic interpretation;
• discuss how and why obesity has become a significant and growing problem for so many people around the world;
• share your recommendations as to how weight gain and obesity can best be managed, including helpful suggestions you may have for individuals, families, communities, workplaces, care environments and governments.

As a growing number of people experience life with obesity, there is a greater need for everyone everywhere to explore obesity as a contemporary health concern. This course invites everyone everywhere to join a discussion about obesity, to identify the causes, learn about the consequences, and to help create solutions.