A major new study highlights the scale of the obesity problem in the UK, with a significant risk of death and disease attached to weight gain.
People with a body mass index (BMI) of 30-35 were at 70% higher risk of developing heart failure than their healthy weight peers (18.25-25 BMI).
The study of 2.8 million adults showed even slightly overweight people were twice as likely to get Type 2 diabetes.
Public Health England said "sustained action" was needed to tackle obesity.
The study also showed:
For those with a BMI of 35-40, the risk of Type 2 diabetes was almost nine times higher, and 12 times higher for sleep apnoea
People with severe obesity (BMI of 40-45) were 12 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes and had a risk of sleep apnoea that was 22 times greater
People with a BMI of 40-45 had triple the risk of heart failure, high blood pressure, and dyslipidaemia (abnormal levels of cholesterol and other fats in the blood)
BMI of 40-45 was also linked to a 50% higher risk of dying prematurely from any cause
The study's author, Christiane Haase, said: "With the number of people living with obesity almost tripling worldwide over the past 30 years (105 million people in 1975 to 650 million in 2016), our findings have serious implications for public health."
We calculate BMI using the standard formula of a person's mass in kg divided by the square of their height in metres (kg/m2) and display it to one decimal place.
Where a user's data is entered in imperial units, we first convert to metric and then carry out the BMI calculation.
The BMI result is assigned to a standard category:
Less than 18.5 - underweight
18.5 to 24.9 - healthy weight
25 to 29.9 - overweight
30 to 39.9 - obese (split into two categories for the new study)
40 and over - very obese (also known as morbidly obese)
The research found that the risk of developing serious health problems was highly dependent on whether or not people already had issues at the start of the study.
For example, having high blood pressure at the start of the study was strongly associated with developing dyslipidaemia, chronic kidney disease and Type 2 diabetes.
Researchers looked at health, death and BMI data from more than 2.8 million adults between January 2000 and July 2018 from the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink.
This was linked with hospital data to estimate the risk for serious health problems.
Victoria Taylor, nutrition lead at the British Heart Foundation, said: "More than a quarter of UK adults (28%) are obese and it's something that we urgently need action on."
But police and prosecutors say the forms are an attempt to plug a gap in the law which says complainants and witnesses cannot be forced to disclose phones, laptops, tablets or smart watches.
Director of Public Prosecutions Max Hill said they would only be looked at where it forms a "reasonable line of enquiry", with only relevant material going before a court if it meets stringent rules.
The digital consent forms can be used for complainants in any criminal investigations but are most likely to be used in rape and sexual assault cases, where complainants often know the suspect.
The forms state that victims will be given the chance to explain why they don't want to give consent for police to access data, but they are also told: "If you refuse permission for the police to investigate, or for the prosecution to disclose material which would enable the defendant to have a fair trial then it may not be possible for the investigation or prosecution to continue."
Analysis
Asking victims, complainants and witnesses - including those alleging rape - to consent to having their smartphones and mobile devices examined is a big ask.
Most modern phones have more computing power than that which powered the first Nasa missions.
They contain photographs (sometimes intimate), emails and social media postings - (sometimes deeply personal, sometimes indiscreet) - not to mention text messages written in haste.
Many people guard the contents of their smartphones jealously and would regard a police examination as an invasion of privacy.
Civil liberties groups have raised concerns that victims may not report crimes if they fear their smartphone will need to be examined.
However, the police do not have the power simply to seize the phones of victims and witnesses, so consent is the only option. Will people willingly hand over their devices? Would you?
There were concerns that evidence was not being disclosed early enough.
One of the defendants affected was student Liam Allan, 22 at the time, who had charges dropped when critical material emerged while he was on trial.
The Met Police apologised to Mr Allan for a series of errors in its handling of the case, in which he was wrongly accused of rape. He later told the BBC the matter had "completely ripped apart my normal personal life".
The CPS then launched a review of every live rape and serious sexual assault prosecution in England and Wales and, along with police, has implemented an improvement plan to try to fix failings in the system.
But Rachel Almeida from Victim Support said it was "very likely" that letting police access personal information on their phone could add to victims' distress.
She said: "We know that rape and sexual assault is already highly under-reported and unfortunately this news could further deter victims from coming forward to access the justice and support they deserve."
A legal challenge is already being planned, the Centre for Women's Justice said. A claim is expected to be brought by at least two women who have been told their cases could collapse if they do not cooperate with requests for personal data.
The Centre for Women's Justice expressed "serious concerns" over what it called "excessive disclosure requests" from police.
"Most complainants fully understand why disclosure of communications with the defendant is fair and reasonable, but what is not clear is why their past history (including any past sexual history) should be up for grabs.
"We seem to be going back to the bad old days when victims of rape are being treated as suspects", Harriet Wistrich, the organisation's director, said.
The CWJ also warned of a "deterrent effect on the reporting of rape allegations", giving the example of a woman, referred to as Olivia, who recently reported rape to police.
Olivia said: "My phone documents many of the most personal moments in my life and the thought of strangers combing through it, to try to use it against me, makes me feel like I'm being violated once again."
'Digital strip searches'
Civil liberties charity Big Brother Watch said victims should not have to "choose between their privacy and justice".
"The CPS is insisting on digital strip searches of victims that are unnecessary and violate their rights," the organisation added.
Rachel Krys, co-director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, said: "We have an extremely serious problem with prosecuting rape in this country and it is a fact that most rapists get away with it.
"Part of the reason for this is that investigations too often focus on women's character, honesty and sexual history, despite rules which are supposed to prevent this, instead of the actions and behaviour of the person accused.
"There is no reason for rape investigations to require such an invasion of women's privacy as a matter of routine."
Scotland Yard said it recognised the "inconvenient" and "awkward" nature of handing devices to police.
"People who have been victimised and subjected to serious sexual assaults, for example, that's an awful thing to happen to them and you don't wish to make it worse by making their lives really difficult.
"But to pursue the offender, the way the law is constructed, we do have these obligations, so we have to find a way of getting that information with a) as much consent as we can, which is informative and b) with the minimum of disruption and irritation and embarrassment to the person whose phone it is that we're dealing with."
Staff reporter(wp/reuters)::: British holidaymakers are favouring destinations outside the European Union after repeated delays to Brexit discouraged travellers from booking early and prompted them to look further afield, travel firm Thomas Cook said on Monday.
Turkey and Tunisia are among the biggest beneficiaries from the trend towards non-EU bookings, the firm said in a report, with demand for both recovering after security concerns curbed bookings in recent years.
Britain was due to leave the EU on March 29, but an impasse in parliament over the terms of Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal has delayed departure. A new deadline of Oct. 31 was agreed with Brussels.
Thomas Cook, the world’s oldest travel company, said it was “clear that the prolonged uncertainty around the manner and timing of Britain’s exit from the European Union has led many to delay their decision on when and where they book for their summer holidays.”
But a majority of the 3,422 UK holidaymakers surveyed by the company nevertheless said they were more likely to holiday abroad than last year, with a quarter saying that a foreign holiday was higher in their spending priorities than in 2018, compared to just 8 percent who said it was lower.
“Britain may be living through unique times from a political perspective, however our desire to holiday abroad is clear,” said Will Waggott, Chief of Tour Operating for Thomas Cook.
“The political turmoil is having an impact in other ways, revealing itself in a clear shift to non-EU countries.”
Thomas Cook said 48 percent of its UK package holiday bookings for this summer so far were to non-EU destinations, up 10 percentage points on the same time last year.
Turkey has overtaken Greece to be the second most popular destination, with Spain remaining in top spot.
And a slight increase in “all-inclusive” holidays could reflect a desire for travellers to “lock in” food and drink costs given the possible volatility in the pound, the company said.
Earlier this month easyJet warned that travellers were holding off booking their summer holidays due to uncertainty over how Brexit would go, weakening demand for tickets and thus prices.
