Rise in children’s weight may reverse health gains

WITH the obesity time bomb ticking louder than ever people must take more responsibility for their health, warned junior health minister Mary Wallace yesterday.

Ms Wallace, who has special responsibility for health promotion, told a cross-border conference in Belfast that the rise in obesity threatened to halt inroads made in recent years in tackling more traditional killer diseases.

She referred to recently released figures from the SLÁN 2007 report, indicating that almost 40% of the population in the republic are overweight and 25% are obese.

While actions taken must target both nutrition and physical activities, people must take responsibility for their own health, she said.

“Individuals are responsible for lifestyle choices which determine health in later years,” she stressed.

Ms Wallace said it was wise to maintain a healthy weight to avoid the problem of obesity and the chronic diseases associated with it.

The international conference that looked at modern developments in tackling obesity was organised by the Health Promotion Agency in Northern Ireland and the Health Service Executive in the Republic.

Northern Ireland health minister Michael McGimpsey said the level of obesity, particularly among children in the North, was incredibly worrying.

“If we are to tackle this challenge, I strongly believe that public health must be at the centre of what we do,” he said.

“We will also continue to work closely across jurisdictions to share experience and expertise in order to make the best possible inroads into this shared problem.”

Mr McGimpsey said the Government cannot tackle obesity on its own. “I believe that we can certainly encourage and promote healthy eating and physical activity but, as a society, we must take more individual responsibility for our own health outcomes.”

In the north, 60% of adults have a weight problem and as many as one in five are obese. And latest figures show that about 22% of primary school children in the north are classed as overweight and obese.

Chief executive of the Health Promotions Agency in the north (HPA), Dr Brian Gaffney, said obesity was estimated to cause about 450 deaths a year in the North and to cost the local economy a staggering £600 million (€699m).

“Being overweight or obese increases the risk of conditions such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and some cancer as well as having a major impact on education, employment and mental and emotional health,” she said.

The World Health Organisation has warned that obesity is one of the most serious public health challenges of the age and that it has reached epidemic proportions worldwide.

New Zealand government’s strategy turns up positive results

NEW ZEALAND’S rate of obesity has begun to slow down following the launch in 2003 of a government- backed strategy.

About 11,000 deaths each year in New Zealand can be attributed to poor nutrition and a lack of physical activity. In a bid to tackle the problem, the New Zealand government launched a strategy called Healthy Eating — Healthy Action.

The project’s communications advisor, Victoria Evans, said the strategy was turning into a success story.

Ms Evans told yesterday’s all-island conference on obesity that improving nutrition, increasing physical activity and reducing obesity were three of the 13 health priorities identified in the health strategy.

The aim was to encourage people to eat well, live physically active lives and attain and maintain a healthy body weight.

The six-year plan will be reviewed next year and, by then, most of the 87 actions should have been implemented, or at least initiated.