THE latest Public Health England figures show 27.6 per cent of adults – that's one in four – in Blackburn with Darwen are classed obese, with 1.5 per cent classed as severely obese.

Just under 40 per cent of people in the borough are overweight while 32.8 per cent fall within the healthy weight range.

Hyndburn has the highest percentage of obese adults in East Lancashire at 31 per cent. That compares with 27.3 per cent in Rossendale, 26.9 per cent in Burnley, 24.2 per cent in Pendle and 21.8 per cent in Ribble Valley.

The average in England is 23.3 per cent.

The chance of suffering serious illness goes up with increasing weight gain, experts analysing health, death and sickness data from UK adults found.

Presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Glasgow, the study found that people with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 to 35 were at 70 per cent higher risk of developing heart failure than their healthy weight peers.

Even a BMI of 25 to 30 increased the risk by 20 per cent, while a BMI of 35 to 40 more than doubled the risk and a BMI of 40 to 45 almost quadrupled the risk.

The study also found that compared with normal weight individuals, a BMI of 25 to 30 increased the risk of Type 2 diabetes and sleep apnoea by more than double, while a person with a BMI of 30 to 35 was more than five times as likely to develop Type 2 diabetes and almost six times as likely to develop sleep apnoea.

For those with a BMI of 35 to 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 to 45) were 12 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes and had a risk of sleep apnoea that was 22 times greater.

The results also showed increasing weight was linked to higher risk of high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat and dyslipidaemia (abnormal levels of cholesterol and other fats in the blood).

Author Christiane Haase, from Novo Nordisk in Denmark, which funded the study, said: "The health risks linked with having excess body weight are particularly high for Type 2 diabetes and sleep apnoea.

"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."

Louis Levy, head of nutrition science at Public Health England (PHE), said: "To reverse what's been decades in the making needs sustained action across the drivers of poor diets and weight gain.

"We're working with industry to make food healthier, we've produced guidance for councils on planning healthier towns and we've delivered campaigns encouraging people to choose healthier food and lead healthier lives."