On October 9, 2025, Italy took an unprecedented step in Europe by approving a law that legally recognizes the obesity as a chronic, progressive disease with a tendency to relapse. Its entry into force occurred on October 25.
To date, no other European country has enacted a national law that recognized obesity with such breadth: as a chronic pathology and with specific guarantees of prevention, treatment and monitoring included in public health care.
Steps in the same direction
However, some surrounding countries have also partially advanced in the same direction. Thus, through the Dispatch No. 12634/2023Portugal approved in December 2023 to implement an Integrated Care Model for the Prevention and Treatment of Obesity, within its National Health Service. Although it is not a law, it defines it as a chronic public health problem and promotes specialized treatment networks.
In Germany, the Bundestag recognized it in 2020 as a disease in a medical and social sense, within the National Strategy against Diabetes and Obesity, although without yet providing it with a legal framework that guarantees benefits or specific health coverage.
And finally, United Kingdom It also does not have a law like Italy’s, but its National Health Service does include obesity among the chronic conditions for priority management, with emphasis on prevention and long-term treatment.
From “personal guilt” to structural problem
Consequently, Italian legislation, to which the magazine The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology has dedicated a few pages to it in this month’s issuemarks a before and after in Europe: it is the first to convert a modern medical and social vision of obesity into a legal norm at the highest level.
For decades, the abnormal accumulation of fat in the body was interpreted as a consequence of bad habits, lack of discipline or wrong food choices. However, scientific evidence has shown that its origin is complex, the result of the interaction between factors genetic, environmental, metabolic and social.
The new Italian legislation assumes that modern vision, and in doing so, breaks the stigma that has accompanied millions of people. Recognizing obesity as a disease means also recognizing that it requires specialized medical attention, not moral judgments.
A silent pandemic
The World Health Organization has described the expansion of obesity as “globesity”an ever-increasing pandemic. He World Obesity Atlas 2025 It is estimated that its global prevalence will have increased by more than 115% between 2010 and 2030. If prevention and treatment measures are not improved, the economic cost could reach $4.32 trillion annually by 2035, almost 3% of global GDP. This figure is comparable to the impact of covid-19 in 2020, or that of climate change today.
This problem is not limited to individual health: it is associated with a substantial increase in cardiovascular, metabolic and oncological diseases. Researchers have even introduced a new term, adiponcosisto describe the relationship between excess adipose tissue and the development of up to 13 types of cancer.
Beyond medical care
By recognizing obesity as a chronic disease with health, social and economic implications, Law no. No. 149 of October 3, 2025 also promotes integrated policies for its prevention and treatment. Its approach combines prevention, education, research and assistance, through the creation of a national program and a specialized observatory
Among its provisions, it promotes information and education campaigns on healthy eating and physical activity, as well as community and school initiatives aimed at creating environments that promote healthy lifestyles. Although it does not contemplate tax or labeling measures, the standard lays the foundations for a multisectoral national strategy.
Change of mentality
The recognition of obesity as a chronic disease with social and health repercussions implies an important symbolic change: affected people become considered subjects of health law, deserving of attention and respect. The new standard promotes education, awareness and professional training to improve social understanding of the problem, laying the foundations to reduce the stigma and encourage a more sensitive and structured view of obesity.
Ultimately, official recognition can help change public discourse, promoting empathy and understanding instead of judgment and blame.
A model for the world
Now, the challenge lies in effectively and sustainably implementing the measures it promotes, guaranteeing coordination between institutional levels and continuous monitoring of results. But if the model is successful, it could inspire a global transformation in the way we understand and address obesity.
How do they conclude? the authors of the article in The Lancetthe Italian decision “represents a crucial step to reduce treatment costs and curb mortality.”
At a time when chronic diseases threaten the sustainability of health systems, recognizing obesity as a disease is, above all, an act of realism and health justice, which must be addressed by nutrition professionals.
José Miguel Soriano del CastilloProfessor of Nutrition and Bromatology at the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Valencia
This article was published in The Conversation. Read the original.
