Obesity rates are set to skyrocket, with one in six children and adolescents worldwide forecast to be obese by 2050, according to a new study. But with significant increases predicted within the next five years, the researchers stress urgent action now could turn the tide on the public health crisis.

The use of contraction inhibitors in the event of an imminent premature birth after 30 weeks has no added value for the health of the baby. This is shown by a largest study to date into the health effects of contraction inhibitors, led by Amsterdam UMC, the results of which were published today in The Lancet.

Without urgent policy reform and action, over half the world’s adult population (3.8 billion) and a third of all children and adolescents (746 million) are forecast to be living with overweight or obesity by 2050—posing an unparalleled threat of premature disease and death at local, national, and global levels, according to a major new analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study BMI Collaborators, published in The Lancet.