As the nation prepares for the season of feasting on chocolate assortments, now is a good time to think about our troubled attitude to food and health. After eating some 5,000 calories a day over Christmas, many of us will experience a rush of guilt over the New Year. Those who can afford it might join a gym.
But even with the best will in the world, many Britons will struggle to get their weight in check. That is because they live and work in environments that militate against a healthy lifestyle. Increasingly, the divide between those who can and can't manage their waistline is a social one. Put plainly, the poorer you are, the fatter you are likely to be.
Tomorrow, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will produce new guidelines on tackling obesity in children. They will approve stomach-stapling surgery for teenagers who are severely overweight. Drastic though it sounds, this recommendation is to be welcomed, because drastic action is necessary to save these young people from the disastrous effects of extra weight - cancer, heart disease, diabetes, crippling joint disease and premature death.
On current trends, by 2010, an estimated 12 million adults and one million children will be obese. The average eight-year-old now eats 1,200 calories a day more than a child of that age did in the 1950s; reversing these habits once they are entrenched is notoriously difficult.
Naturally, the calorific intake of every individual citizen cannot be the responsibility of government. But ministers can take action that would at least remove barriers to change. The first seminal report on how to tackle obesity was written for the World Health Organisation by Professor David James in 1990. But many of his recommendations have never been acted on. There is still no one minister in charge of policy. Instead, departments compete for control over different initiatives, whether it is banning advertising junk food to children or attempts to build sports facilities in poorer areas. Even a simple idea, such as regular weight checks for children to identify people at risk early and teach their families about better nutrition, could make a difference.
Indulgence at Christmas is a national custom. But so is the New Year resolution. One suggestion for the government is that it resolves to look back on the James report and take some concerted action to avert a public-health crisis.
From : observer.guardian.co.uk
