Mexico has surpassed the United States in levels of adult obesity because of its changing dietary patterns, experts say.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) recorded almost a third of Mexicans - 32.8 per cent - as obese compared to 31.8 per cent of Americans.
Nutritionists said one of the biggest factors in the country is fizzy drinks, as well as people replacing their traditional diet with junk food.
“One factor is that Mexicans consume more soft drinks per person than any other country. That’s a lot of sugar,” said Katia Garcia, a nutritionist and researcher for the Power of the Consumer group.
Ms Garcia said Mexicans are increasingly eating more refined flour, sugar and energy-dense foods. “People have been abandoning the traditional diet, tortillas, beans and chilli, which are rich in fibre and vitamins,” she added.
Paradocially Mexico is still battling malnutrition as large numbers of children in poor, rural villages remain underweight.
The FAO report found both Mexico and America were topped by Egypt at 34.6 per cent of adults being obese, Kuwait at 42.8 per cent and the Micronesian island of Nauru at 71.1 per cent.
A number of island nations like Samoa and Tonga have more than half their populations listed as obese. Bahamas and Barbados are in the mid-thirties range.
