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Let’s prepare for the next five years because children
(and the rest of us) are going to get fatter. There is no
question about it. The obesity epidemic will affect you and
your family as it is predicted by 2020 more than half of children
in the UK could be obese. The International Obesity Task Force
has looked at data on childhood obesity from around the world
and warns that the number of overweight children in the EU
is set to rise by 1.3 million a year with more than 300,000
of those children likely to be obese.
Despite all the research the trends are going in the wrong
direction and then can easily be interpreted in the form of
the words lardy, porky, curvy, podgy, stocky, etc. Our vocabulary
will change to cope with the large number of us who are indulging
and bulging.
It’s sad but American backsides are now so vast that
standard needles cannot reach the muscle through the fat.
If your bottom looks as if you may encroach on your neighbour
in the aeroplane – beware you may have to pay for two
seats! Undertakers are having problems as normal coffins have
to be redesigned with so many of us being overweight when
we die.
“This is a
public health time bomb as children move into adult life”
Professor Colin Waine, National Obesity Forum
Bill Clinton has linked up with the American Heart Association
and the three biggest drinks manufacturers – Coke, Pepsi
and Cadbury Schweppes to start taking action in schools. It’s
called ‘The Soda Deal’ and we badly need a similar
initiative here in the UK.
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As young people pour sugar in a constant stream into their
young bodies and pile on the pounds, this type of informed
political action can make a valuable contribution. In the
US the average 11-14 year old consumes twice as much soda
drink as water; 15-19 year olds drink an average of two 355ml
serving of soda each day which is the equivalent of 0.7kg
of sugar each week! It is thought the average American drinks
56 gallons of Coke, Pepsi and other soda a year. Sugary drinks
apparently account for one sixth of all the calories! This
is unbelievable no wonder we have created an obesonogenic
environment where our children are simply blowing up. If you
drink a can of sugary drink a day a teenager is likely to
be up to a stone (6.4 kg) heavier after a year.
A can of Coca-cola (330 ml) has a list of ingredients including
water, sugar, colouring, phosphoric acid, flavourings including
caffeine. It contains 42 kcal/100ml and 10.6g sugar/100ml.
So in one can of drink alone, there are 11.7 level teaspoons
of sugar! That is an awful lot of sugar.
In America it is hoped the Bill will benefit 35 million school-age
children and make a huge impact amongst the growing number
of children developing obesity related Type 2 diabetes which,
in the past, was generally found in adults.
A healthy alternative drink is water! Low fat milk, milkshakes
without added sugar and 100% fruit juice in moderation can
act as alternatives to the fizz can. Looks like we need to
place some stickers “Think Before You Drink” on
the fridge door.
“More radical
solutions (to obesity) should be considered: taxing soft drinks
and fast foods; subsidizing nutritious foods, like fruits
and vegetables; labelling of the contents of fast food: and
prohibiting marketing and advertising to children”
Lancet, 2002
How much TV do we watch? A Guardian survey found on average
children aged between 4 -15 years watch 17 hours of TV a week.
British adults spend 164 minutes per day on the internet which
is 16 minutes more than the time they spend watching TV. We
are as sedentary as stone…lets get moving because if
we are moving we find it difficult to eat. It’s difficult
to eat the love tub of popcorn while walking the dog but an
icecream well that’s different…oh dear!
When you go to the GP should they say "You are fat"?
Particularly when you made the appointment to talk about something
else totally unrelated medically. It’s difficult but
that is exactly what GP’s are being asked to do to combat
the obesity epidemic. There are now new leaflets to share
weight loss ideas such as:
Avoid walking past a fish and chip shop
Don’t keep crisps and biscuits at home
Don’t offer food as a reward...
Fat classes? Children aged 4-10 years should be weighed as
they start at primary school and again before they leave.
Their parents will be warned if the child is too fat by letter,
hopefully encouraging a sense of responsibility for their
child’s size and asking them to “shape up”.
School nurses will start the testing this summer and the results
will be used to create a ‘fat map of the country. Psychiatrists
are concerned it may cause an increase in eating disorders
and parent-teacher associations indicate it is reflective
of nanny-state mentality.
Are we killing our children with kindness? It is easier to
say yes to a child wanting snack food when everybody is frazzled
and as we all know too well that ‘little snacks lead
to big slacks!’ Are parents concerned about obesity?
Do they know the true fact about future diabetes? That it
can lead to heart disease, blindness and kidney failure. A
child born in the UK in 2000 has a one in three chance of
contracting diabetes in their lifetime.
"Overweight
children who develop Type 2 diabetes may have heart attacks
and need coronary bypass surgery before they reach the age
of thirty."
Kelly Brownell in Food Fight
It has a great idea…”don’t just check in
– weigh in” . When you arrive at the hotel you
pay according to how much weigh at a rate of 35p per kilogram
per night. Double rooms are priced according to how much you
both weigh. It has been a huge success and the hotel owner
says many of his guests have returned. Apparently they are
keen to share their weight loss experiences.
A glance at what is happening around the world in regards
to obesity makes interesting reading.
The Japanese used to follow the wise adage “Hara hachi
bunme”…which translates as ”stop eating
when you are 80% full”. This healthy advice is now being
disregarded by the younger generations of Japanese who have
ever increasing waistlines. Although only 24% of Japanese
aged 15 years and over are considered overweight (compared
to 65% in the US), it is now being recognised as a growing
problem. Tofu has been exchanged for burgers and a love of
computer technology has resulted in greater numbers of flabby
Japanese. Changing the traditional high protein diet for greater
amounts of animal fat is considered by medics to be the main
problem. Maybe the new adage should be “fat child becomes
fat adult.”
Annual increase of 17% in the number of obese children predicted
it will reach the level of the US by 2020 at this rate.
Saudi Arabia has an affluent society which has generated
its own public health challenge. In the population, 52% of
men and 66%(!) of women are overweight or obese. It appears
too much affluence means you don’t have to physically
move and the pounds pile on.
The waistline is a quick way to test your wellbeing:
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MEN
More then 37in (94cm) have an increased health risk
But if more than 40in (102cm) then the risk is substantial.
WOMEN
More then 32in (80cm) have an increased health risk
but if greater than 35in (88cm) then the risk is substantial. |
The film ‘Supersize Me’ (and the book) was a great
success and a real boost for healthy eating. Now a British
produced drama is attacking the food industry. ‘Fast
Food Nation’ could possibly be more influential than
‘Supersize Me’ which is thought to have resulted
in supersize options being taken off the MacDonald’s
menu. In the film, a fast food executive goes to the local
meat packing factory to investigate the contamination of the
company’s meat with high levels of excrement. He discovers
illegal Mexican immigrants being treated as badly as the food.
The film is a series of character sketches based on the main
themes running through the book ‘Fast Food Nation, by
Eric Schlosser. It makes a clear political statement and already
has resulted in trade groups representing producers of beef,
milk, potatoes beef and snacks developing their own website
“Best Food Nation”. They hope this will counter
the propaganda that they perceive the film is spreading.
It looks like female dieters tell a few porky pies about what
is going on in their lives. In a survey of 1,142 women, 700
admitted to being on a diet and also the following:
| 22% women bought clothes that
were too small as an incentive
27% women threw food away so they didn’t eat it
26% women lied about what they had eaten
18% women had hidden food or eaten it secretly
54% had eaten comfort food to make themselves feel better |
Well it’s interesting to know what’s really going
on in people lives but does it help with those the extra pounds?
What do you think?
If you have an issue on obesity you would like to share then
do email Friends
in the Kitchen and let us know your thoughts.
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