Childhood obesity: £372m for health strategy
A £372m anti-obesity strategy spanning schools, the food industry and employers was unveiled by the Government last week.
The cross-department strategy aims to promote children's health and nutrition, boost exercise levels and build towns that encourage physical activity.
It follows the Foresight report (News, 25 October 2007), which found that if current trends continue, nearly 60 per cent of adults and 25 per cent of children would be obese by 2050.
The strategy includes a campaign to raise breastfeeding rates, invest in healthy schools, increase participation in sports and exercise and make cooking a compulsory part of the national curriculum.
A £75m marketing programme will urge parents to improve their children's diet and activity levels. Local authorities may be given power to refuse planning permission to fast food outlets in locations near parks and schools.
But there are no plans to extend junk food advertising restrictions. Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum said, 'There must be a commitment to banning junk food advertising on TV before the watershed. There also needs to be a commitment to the reformulation of food, and increased measuring and monitoring of children's growth.'
The Government also said it was finalising a Healthy Food Code of Good Practice in partnership with the food and drink industry to bring down levels of saturated fat, sugar and salt in food.
Further information:
'Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives: a cross-government strategy for England' can be downloaded at www.dh.gov.uk.
