Obesity - How have we got ourselves in this mess and how do we get out?

Obesity - How have we got ourselves in this mess and how do we get out?


A controversial subject I know, and before anyone tunes out or thinks this is a dig at the larger ladies and gentleman of this world I can assure you, it's not. I have no issue with people who carry a little extra weight - hell I like cake as much as the next person and I'm more comfortable with curves than without - but the obesity 'epidemic' we are seeing in the UK and US is a very different problem, thats not about having that naughty doughnut or losing those extra Christmas pounds. Its not even about being a healthy active size 18 when you'd rather be a 16. This is about morbid obesity. 


There are enormous economic consequences to the rise in obesity, most notable to the NHS with the increased risks of cardiovascular problems, diabetes, preventable cancers and so on. The obesity trend is set to rise by 11 million more adults by 2030, and with current cost of obesity related illness and disease to the NHS estimated to be running at £4.2 billion per year, this is set to rise by a further £2 billion per year by 2030 - a cost the NHS simply can not absorb. Sadly the rates of morbid obesity are rising at the same rate in our children, leading to a new generation of obese adults. In addition to the costs to the NHS, there are the predicted increase in those who are unable to work due to weight related ill health, a further burden on our crippled and broken benefits system. 


You probably think by now this is just a rant at how 'fatties are costing us money' - its not. I am deeply saddened by it, particularly because so many of our younger generation are growing up with unhealthy attitudes to food and exercise. The fast food, take away, have it now culture that has been growing for generations is partly to blame, poor education in good old fashioned Home Economics - i.e teaching children to cook, detached families with no 'traditional' role models. All of these things are to blame along with lack of exercise, fear of leaving our children to play outdoors and the rise in computer game culture. These children then grow up to have their own children, still with little or no understanding of how cook, or knowledge about nutrition. And so the cycle continues, and deepens.


That said, I don't believe schools or the government' can be held entirely to blame. Somewhere, adults - parents - need to take responsibility to educate themselves. To realise that eating crisps and chocolate and take away alone is bad for them and their children. That having cream and sugar on cornflakes, followed by 2 chocolate bars, 3 packets of crisps and a can of Redbull at 2am (as seen on C4's Supersize v Superskinny) is indeed going to make you fat. There is a belief that it is cheaper to eat processed fatty, salty food than home cook healthy food. This has been proven to be nonsense. It is perfectly possible to feed a family of 4 on a VERY frugal budget without buying a single frozen, processed, pre packaged, ready prepared item. I do it every week out of necessity. Make your own sauces, make your own pastry. It costs very little and you know what is in it - it may take longer but isn't your health and your children's health worth that sacrifice? Get outdoors, get your kids outdoors, walk to the shops, take the stairs not the lift. All the things we KNOW we should do but often don't. 


Back in my parents generation before the explosion of supermarket culture the concept of the weekly 'big shop' was still almost alien and shopping was done locally in greengrocers, butchers and bakers. Food was locally produced and seasonal (are you all sensing that I have veered back onto my old bugbear) and most people walked to and from the shops. Now we drive or get lifts, or take taxis. Waking home from Tesco with the 'Big Shop' is not possible, and so another element of exercise is lost. Now we have dishwashers, washing machines, tumble driers, vacuums. In our grandparents generations floors were swept by hand, washing up was an hour spent standing at the sink, and laundry was done by hand and pegged out in the back yard. Such small things, yet they all contributed to an active lifestyle. So over time the explosion of technology to make life easier has made life more sedentary. And at the same time our diets have become filled with saturated fats, processed meats and cheese. 


What is the answer then? Jamie Oliver (love him or hate him) tried hard with his 'food revolution' to change eating habits in schools and to make school dinners healthy and nutritious. To some degree this was a success yet overruled by cost and some parents who were unwilling to accept, or even try, change. The government launched its Change For Life campaign to try to highlight the links between diet, exercise, weight and disease. Our televisions are flooded with shows about weight loss, and diet products stack our shelves. Yet it is evident by the continued rise in obesity rates that none of these things are working. I'm not suggesting there is a quick fix, but somewhere, somehow this problem needs to be tackled for the sake of our future generations. 


It seems that in this day and age we have developed an unhealthy relationship with food, and it is no longer viewed as an essential sustenance for a healthy life. On the other side of the coin rates of teen anorexia are rising as young adults feel they need to compete with an unrealistic view of perfection or they seek to 'control' the only part of their life they can. While food is also used by many as a reward for a bad day, a treat when your feeling low or a pick me up. I can only compare this to addictions like smoking or alcoholism and perhaps it needs to be recognised and treated as such. 


I wish I had the answer - I'm just one person trying to do the best for her own children, to educate them in healthy eating and to make an active lifestyle the norm. How can this message be effectively heard by the masses?