A full lockdown could be imposed again in Northern Ireland.
Seventy four people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mid and East Antrim over the past week.
In Belfast, 60 people tested positive, while 48 were confirmed as having the coronavirus in the Antrim and Newtownabbey area.
The rise has caused concern, especially as children are due to return to school, and lockdown measures have eased.
And the health minister Robin Swann has said he will be recommending restrictions to the NI Executive to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Speaking to the Nolan Show, Mr Swann expressed his concern at the recent rise in cases.
And growing evidence suggests that being obese or excessively overweight puts people at greater risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19.
UK and international studies that have been published during the pandemic have been reported by Public Health England in its publication Excess Weight and COVID-19.
The association between obesity and COVID-19 can be attributed to excess fatty tissue on heart and lung health, among other functions.
The current evidence does not suggest that having excess weight increases people’s chances of contracting COVID-19 rather that obese people are significantly more likely to become seriously ill and be admitted to intensive care with COVID-19, compared to those with a healthy weight or BMI.
Evidence shows that Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities are disproportionately affected by obesity as well as COVID-19.