According to the New Zealand's Ministry of Health, more than 1 million Kiwi adults are obese. The annual report indicated that adult obesity in the country has grown substantially in the past 15 years.

Between 2011 and 2012, 28 percent of adults or equivalent to 1 million are considered now obese.

Health experts said an individual is known as obese when he or she has a body mass index of 30 or more. This is calculated by dividing a person's weight in kilograms by the square of his height in meters.

The ratio of obese adults in New Zealand was 19 percent in 1997. In 2007, the rate rose to 26 percent. The country's obesity record rose to 28 percent in 2012. The report revealed similar obesity rates among men and women.

The ministry's report also said excess weight or obesity is a major contributor to various health complications. An obese adult can develop Type 2 diabetes, stroke, heart diseases and different types of cancer.

Pacific adults in New Zealand have a higher obesity rate of 62 percent followed by the Maori adults at 44 percent. Obesity among Pacific children is 23 percent while the Maori children has 17 percent.

The ministry also found that obesity rates were strongly associated with socioeconomic status. Obesity rate among children living in underprivileged areas is higher.

When obesity rates in other OECD countries were compared to New Zealand, Kiwis were found to be more obese similar to the Australian counterpart. Based on the findings, New Zealand has more than the OECD average in terms of obesity.

The OECD average is 22 percent while New Zealand has a current obesity rate of 28 percent. If New Zealand's obesity rate will continue to rise, it will replace tobacco as the leading cause of health problems by 2016.

Green Party health spokesman Kevin Hague noted that New Zealand cannot afford the rising cost of obesity-related diseases and urged the government to do something about this growing problem.

Hague said the figures in the report should be a wake-up call for the government. The Ministry of Health also reported that the number of people diagnosed with diabetes has reached 225,700. Adults showing symptoms of diabetes or "pre-diabetes" is 25.5 percent.

If the current trend will continue, New Zealand will have high incidences of heart diseases and diabetes that may cripple the healthcare system.

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