In a recent article (Nov 2012) published by The Independent newspaper, 'Britain is the fattest nation is Western Europe, with more than a quarter of the population ranked as obese.'1
'The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, which represents nearly every doctor in the UK, said ballooning waistlines already constituted a "huge crisis".'2 There are a number of illnesses that are increased by obesity, including diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, asthma, arthritis and some forms of cancer. Unfortunately, there are no signs of obesity slowing down, either.
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Education has to be at the heart of where the problem lies, but there are other factors that are also to blame, including advertising and low prices of unhealthy food and drinks.
In yesterday's papers, doctors were calling for fizzy drinks to be heavily taxed and for unhealthy food ads to be banned until we have seen a dramatic decrease in the UK's obesity problem. Click on the image above to read the full article.
Applying taxes to unhealthy food and drink, like they do with cigarettes and alcohol, would no doubt have an immediate impact, but would it be a long term solution? For it to have a long term effect, ideally this regulation would also introduce subsidies for fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods, and more access to information in schools around the country to build awareness of the issue.
What are your views on how to tackle the problem of obesity?
Do you think the government should be able to tax unhealthy food?
'The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, which represents nearly every doctor in the UK, said ballooning waistlines already constituted a "huge crisis".'2 There are a number of illnesses that are increased by obesity, including diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, asthma, arthritis and some forms of cancer. Unfortunately, there are no signs of obesity slowing down, either.
So what can we do to prevent this problem?
Education has to be at the heart of where the problem lies, but there are other factors that are also to blame, including advertising and low prices of unhealthy food and drinks.
In yesterday's papers, doctors were calling for fizzy drinks to be heavily taxed and for unhealthy food ads to be banned until we have seen a dramatic decrease in the UK's obesity problem. Click on the image above to read the full article.
Applying taxes to unhealthy food and drink, like they do with cigarettes and alcohol, would no doubt have an immediate impact, but would it be a long term solution? For it to have a long term effect, ideally this regulation would also introduce subsidies for fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods, and more access to information in schools around the country to build awareness of the issue.
What are your views on how to tackle the problem of obesity?
Do you think the government should be able to tax unhealthy food?
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