A SHOCKING number of Bolton residents are obese, new figures show.

Statistics have revealed 37 per cent of the borough’s over-16 population — more than 86,000 — are battling the bulge.

The figure is higher than the regional average of 35.3 per cent and the national figure of 34.1 per cent.

And the numbers are on the rise, with just a quarter of people classed as obese in 2008.

Lesley Jones, deputy director of public health in Bolton, said: “The numbers of overweight people and obesity levels in Bolton is a huge public health concern.

“The influences on what people eat and how active they are, are extremely complicated. For example, we have become more dependant on the car as a society and less inclined to undertake active forms of travel such as walking or cycling. Food production, manufacturing, retail and catering all influence the food choices available.”

Being obese puts you at risk of a number of health problems, including diabetes and heart disease.

It can also shorten life expectancy, for example, people aged over 40 who are obese can die six to seven years earlier than their peers.

NHS Bolton says obesity is caused, in simple terms, by people consuming more calories than they burn off.

Dr Sindy Newman, an obesity management specialist for Diet UK, said: “The problem is eating the wrong thing — not necessarily eating too much — but eating refined carbohydrates such as sweets, cakes, biscuits and fatty foods.

“It’s also a lack of education about what to eat and a sedentary lifestyle.”

She said social and economic factors were at the heart of the problem, and the issue was not well managed by doctors.

She said: “Obesity is a lifelong condition. It’s not good enough to get a diet sheet from a GP or just go to a weight loss group.”