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WHO statistics estimated malnutrition affected one in three worldwide back in 2000. In 2009, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimated that over one billion people suffer serious undernutrition. Technically, undernutrition results from insufficient food perhaps combined with repeated infectious diseases. It includes being severely underweight or dangerously thin (wasted), too short (stunted), and deficient in vitamins and minerals. Every year, about 1.5 million children die from wasting caused by severe undernutrition. For most people in poor countries, however, malnutrition caused by an imbalanced or inadequate diet is more likely. Many rely too much on high-energy staples, such as maize or rice. Good nutrition is not just about consuming enough calories; people need protein and micronutrients they can only get through a balanced diet. When people do not, or cannot, eat a wide range of food, they become malnourished. They can survive, but not flourish.

Developing nations already prioritize food security (ensuring access to food), but simply providing food is not enough. To protect vulnerable populations, governments must also ensure nutrition security.

Each year, almost 2 million people globally (including more than 600 000 in the WHO European Region) die due to physical inactivity. More physically active people benefit from a sense of well-being that relates to physical health and higher capacity to deal with stress. When compared with sedentary people, those with higher levels of physical activity are more likely to maintain a healthy weight and less prone to chronic diseases.

Adequate body weight results from the balance of regular physical activity and adequate diet on a daily basis. It is estimated that a minimum of regular physical activity (5-7 days a week) is related to lower risk of noncommunicable diseases. Overweight and obese people have body weight greater than that considered appropriate for a given height. The terms also identify ranges of weight that seem to be related to increased risk of disease and in population terms account for the so-called burden of disease and the loss of years lived with quality of life. Overweight and obese individuals are at higher risk of developing diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases.

WHO predicts that by 2015, about 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and over 700 million people will be classified as obese. Obesity rates have doubled over the past years. Obesity- and overweight-related diseases are more come in poorer countries and populations. People with lower incomes tend to consume more fat, meat and sugar, while those with higher incomes consume more fruit and vegetables.

Worldwide, WHO estimates that more than 22 million children under the age of 5 years are obese. Childhood obesity leads to a higher risk of disability and premature death in adulthood. Obese children are more likely to suffer bullying, discrimination, low self-esteem and poor body image. 

Between one fifth and more than one third of overweight preschool children will become overweight adults. About half of overweight children and adolescents are expected to be overweight adults.

Rates of obesity among children are estimated to have tripled during the last 20 years. Fifty per cent of all children in the United Kingdom are projected to be classified as obese by 2020, if present trends continue at the current rate. Obesity alone costs the United Kingdom economy over £2 billion annually.

By 2020, at least a third of girls and a fifth of boys will be classified as obese; 16% of children and teenagers globally are considered to be overweight. Children with two obese parents are more than six times as likely to become obese than children with non-obese parents. Individuals who were not breastfed are at higher risk of obesity when controlling for all other factors. In addition, breastfeeding for at least the first six months of life appears to be a factor protecting against obesity.