Food industry should be regulated in the same way as the tobacco industry - this is the opinion of experts from the World Obesity Federation and Consumers International. Experts from both organizations urged governments around the world to introduce binding rules for all manufacturers of food and beverages, BBC reports.

One of the ways of such regulation can be  the visual image, showing the damage to the health of a particular product.

New rules may relate to reduction of salt, sugar and saturated fats in foods,  as well as improving the quality of products delivered to schools and hospitals. Artificial transfats should be banned for use in foods and beverages in the next five years.

Among other recommendations are: regulation of junk food advertising, especially in children's programs, revision of pricing policy on junk food, a tax on similar products et.c.

«We want to avoid a situation like the 1960s, where the tobacco industry were saying there is nothing wrong with cigarettes, they are good for our health, and 30 or 40 years later millions have died,» - said the representative of Consumers International Luke Upchurch.

«This is very interesting and their recommendations are largely sensible and practical. One significant difference between tobacco regulation and food regulation is that we need food to survive; we don't need tobacco,» - said the founder of the UK's National Obesity Forum doctor Ian Campbell.

«The inescapable fact is obesity is killing on a massive scale and only action from governments to tackle head-on the fundamental causes of obesity will lead to any meaningful decreases,» - noted Campbell.

According to experts, the death rate from obesity has increased from 2.6 million deaths per year in 2005 to 3.4 million in 2010.