A BBC investigation highlights that the number of overweight or obese children and adolescents in Italy continues to rise, placing the country among the worst in Europe according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The British broadcaster points to changes in dietary habits as a key factor: the traditional Mediterranean diet, which made Italy famous worldwide, would now be followed by only about 10% of Italians, according to Dr. Valter Longo, director of the Longevity Institute at the University of Southern California. Longo describes the modern diet of young people as concentrated on what he calls the "five Ps": pizza, pasta, potatoes, proteins, and bread.

The BBC report indicates that the nutritional crisis is particularly acute in southern Italian regions. In Campania, more than 40% of children aged 8 and 9 are overweight, according to the report. The neighborhood of Ponticelli is described as one of the "world capitals" of childhood obesity. The investigation also references individual cases, such as a 17-year-old named Salvatore who reached 170 kg in weight, with severe limitations in walking.

The report recalls that in the 1950s, studies by physiologist Ancel Keys and biochemist Margaret Keys on communities in southern Italy showed that a diet based on vegetables, legumes, olive oil, whole grains, and fish provided exceptional protection against cardiovascular diseases. That research turned a regional tradition into a global health benchmark, but according to the BBC, the Italy that inspired that model has changed significantly.

The same investigation also notes that childhood obesity is a recognized emergency in the United Kingdom, affecting about 22% of children at the start of primary school and over 35% by the end, according to data from Oxford and UCL.