Doctors launch obesity campaign
Doctors take health medical insurance very seriously and are beginning a new campaign to help tackle the problem of obesity in the UK.
Nearly a quarter of UK adults are obese and about a third of children are obese by the age of nine. The Academy of Royal Medical Colleges (AoMRC) say that this is a bigger problem for the UK population than HIV or swine flu.
The AoMRC is beginning a three month inquiry into finding strategies for tackling obesity levels. This will include considering taxation on high fat foods and possibly some restrictions on advertising. They argue that allowing some food companies such as Coca-Cola and McDonalds to sponsor major sporting events like the Olympics could be counter productive.
The AoMRC will also look into steps that individuals can take, such as diet, exercise and parenting advice.
The health medical insurance campaign may be able to work in the same way as the current anti-smoking drive.
A spokesperson for the campaign said: “It’s much more likely, as in smoking, that the solution will lie in changing the environments, changing the way people are exposed to marketing, advertising and pressures to buy these kinds of foods.” They added that taxation of cigarettes helps to deter people from buying them and suggested that this could be applied to high fat foods.
The Department of Health welcomed the campaign as an addition to its existing campaigns and are looking forward to the results of the inquiry.
A spokesperson for the Food and Drink Federation industry was keen to highlight the work that had already been done to change and develop healthier products and clearer labelling.