Beijing: Chinese people are growing taller as the country becomes richer but they are getting fatter even faster, the government and state media said.
The proportion of Chinese over-18s who were overweight stood at 30.1 percent in 2012, up 7.3 percentage points over a decade, Wang Guoqiang, a vice director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, told a press conference.
The obesity rate had risen by 4.8 percentage points to 11.9 percent, he said Tuesday -- a two-thirds increase.
"The problem of overweight and obesity is rising sharply as the dietary make-up has changed," Wang said.
The average Chinese man weighed 66.2 kilograms (146 pounds) in 2012, he said, citing a government report on national nutrition and chronic diseases, with women weighing in at 57.3 kilograms.
Males have put on an average 3.5 kilograms over 10 years, the China Daily said Wednesday citing previous figures, while women were 2.9 kilograms heavier.
AFP
