Cutting down fat in foods could prevent 4.5 million people from becoming overweight or obese in the UK, a new study suggests. Experts from the Wolfson Institute, Queen Mary University of London, found that reducing the fat content in manufactured and out-of-home foods by up to 20% over five years may cut the prevalence of people being overweight or obese by 6.8%. As a result of this strategy, they claimed 4.5 million fewer people would go on to become overweight and obese . This reduction in energy intake would result in an average weight loss of nearly 6lb (2.7kg) over five years, they said. Their study, which was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, estimated that this could prevent 183,000 cases of type 2 diabetes over the course of 20 years. Advertisement Tens of thousands of deaths from heart disease and strokes could also be prevented over 20 years, the experts added. Commenting on the study, Professor Graham … [Read more...] about Obesity report: Reducing fat content in food could stop 4.5m people becoming overweight, study suggests