The Telegraph
By Laura Donnelly, Health Editor7:13PM BST 07 Jun 2014
Soaring obesity levels mean one in 10 deaths in England and Wales is now caused by excess weight, the chief medical officer has warned.
Prof Dame Sally Davies, the Chief Medical Officer for England, said that a “normalisation” of being overweight meant many people did not recognise that they weighed too much, and that the extra pounds could shorten their life.
Writing for The Sunday Telegraph, she highlighted research which shows that about 10 per cent of deaths in England and Wales are the result of excess weight.
The study, by the University of Cambridge, suggests that next year, between 40,000 and 53,000 deaths in England and Wales will be attributable to extra pounds, including more than three quarters of diabetic deaths and one quarter of deaths from heart disease.
Dame Sally said she was concerned that spiralling obesity levels, with two thirds of the population now categorised as overweight or obese, meant that many such people were blind to it, and to the associated risks.
She said she was particularly concerned by studies showing that most parents of overweight children did not believe their offspring weighed too much.
The Government’s principal medical adviser writes: “It is worrying that studies show some people who are overweight believe they are about the right weight. This normalisation is even more worrying when it comes to children. In one study, 77 per cent of parents of overweight children did not recognise that their child was overweight.”
In the past two decades, the number of obese adults has almost doubled, from 13.2 per cent among men in 1993, to 24.4 per cent now, while among women it has risen from 16.4 to 25.1 per cent.
In March, in her annual report on the health of the nation, Dame Sally said she was concerned that the use of larger mannequins in clothes shops, and “size inflation” – when clothes of the same size label become larger – were normalising the idea of being overweight.
Ten days ago, the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (Nice) provoked controversy with its advice that two thirds of the population be sent to state-sponsored slimming classes.
Nice said all obese patients should be offered free places on courses run by firms such as Weight Watchers and Slimming World, with spaces found for those who were overweight where possible.
Dame Sally writes: “While the guidance has prompted a lot of debate, we cannot lose sight of how important it is that people get the right support they need to tackle excess weight. If they do not, we will all be picking up a much larger bill in the future.
“The latest estimate of the cost to the NHS of overweight or obesity-related conditions is £5.1 billion each year and there is a great cost to society and the wider economy. Then there is the cost to the individual.
Obesity is the leading cause of serious diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer, and it is estimated that about 10 per cent of all deaths each year in England can be attributed to being overweight and obese.”
Last month, Simon Stevens, the new head of the NHS, said he would like to see businesses introduce financial incentives for employees who take steps to improve their heath and reduce their Body Mass Index (BMI).
Dame Sally urged families to do their part in reversing long-term trends in child obesity.
She writes: “As children take their first steps through the school gates, one in 10 is already obese. By the time they leave primary school, this number has grown to one in five. Simple changes to diet and exercise can make such a difference.”