Claim: Obese people cause global warming

London -- Some British experts say fat people are contributing to global warming more than those who are thin because they require more food and fuel.

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine scientists said the transportation and food costs of obese people are contributing to increasing energy prices and food defects.

"We are all becoming heavier and it is a global responsibility. Obesity is a key part of the big picture," researcher Phil Edwards said.

Critics argue that food waste causes a much bigger strain on resources than obesity and it is unfair to blame overweight individuals for the world's problems, The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday.

"Obese people have enough issues to deal with without being demonized for their impact on the environment. The truth is all people are an environmental burden," said Keith-Thomas Ayoob of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.