People with poor dietary habits eat too much sugar and fat. The excess fat and the sugar provide additional energy. If our level of physical activity is not sufficient to burn up all this energy, the ingested fat is stored as body fat. Overweight arises when a person's diet provides more energy than their body needs.

You are at risk if you have:
- a family history of obesity
- lack of exercise
- unhealthy eating habits
- an underlying disease, such as type 2 diabetes