Mr. Speaker, March 4 is World Obesity Day, and we should be aware of the serious situation that Canada is facing.
In 1981, just 9% of Canadians lived with obesity. Now, according to a recent study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, this has risen to roughly a third of Canadians. We have one of the highest rates of obesity in the OECD.
What is troubling is that obesity is a strong predictor of health complications, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, liver and kidney diseases and cancer.
Obesity is a chronic disease that is placing enormous pressure on an already overburdened health care system, but by taking action to prevent and treat obesity, we can improve our health care systems. Personalized lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise and, when necessary, medical interventions like pharmacotherapy or bariatric surgery can all help to improve the health of Canadians.