“On behalf of EASO, I welcome the launch of the EU Safe Hearts Plan and commend the European institutions for placing cardiovascular health firmly on the policy agenda. To achieve sustainable reductions in cardiovascular disease, it is essential to recognise and address obesity as a chronic disease that sits at the centre of cardiovascular risk across the life course. Strengthening national capacity to deliver evidence-based, person-centred obesity management within cardiovascular prevention and care pathways will be critical not only for improving outcomes, but also for supporting the long-term sustainability and resilience of Europe’s health systems.”
Professor Volkan Yumak,
President, EASO
EASO congratulates the European Commission on the publication of the Safe Hearts Plan and welcomes its positive advances, including the strong focus on children and young people, early and coordinated screening, personalised multidisciplinary cardiovascular disease (CVD) care pathways, and the provision of technical and financial support to Member States. Together, these elements provide a solid foundation for strengthening prevention and care across Europe.
However, EASO is concerned that obesity is not addressed with sufficient prominence in the Plan, despite clear evidence that it is a major and growing driver of cardiovascular disease. By 2030, an estimated 30% of Europeans will be living with obesity. Obesity is a chronic disease with strong genetic and biological determinants and a gateway to over 200 complications, including diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
EASO therefore calls on the European Commission and Member States to seize this opportunity by placing obesity management at the centre of EU cardiovascular policy. Despite its scale and impact, obesity has not yet been systematically addressed across EU health frameworks, and existing initiatives have not applied the same urgency, coherence or strategic integration afforded to other non-communicable diseases.
Embedding concrete, evidence-based measures to address obesity within the EU Cardiovascular Health Plan would significantly strengthen its impact. Without decisive and coordinated action, the combined burden of obesity and CVD will continue to strain health systems, reduce quality of life and place growing pressure on Europe’s economy and workforce.
With sustained action, the Plan can deliver measurable progress by reducing obesity, preventing and better managing cardiovascular disease, improving lives and strengthening the resilience of Europe’s health systems. EASO stands ready to work with the Commission, Member States and partners to support this ambition.
Read the Commission’s plan here: https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/dfb60cde-21a5-426d-8616-e394a326abc2_en?filename=ncd_com-2025-1024_act_en.pdf
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