You’ve likely heard that we are in the midst of an obesity epidemic, but what exactly does that mean? Obesity is a term used to describe excess body fat accumulation to the point in which it is accompanied by adverse health effects. To be classified as obese, one must have a body mass index (BMI) of above 30, which takes into consideration both a person’s height and weight. Statistics Canada estimates that one in four adult Canadians (approximately 6.3 million Canadians) were classified as obese in 2012, an increase of 17.5% from 2003. With rapidly increasing rates of obesity, focus is starting to shift towards addressing this issue.