You’re in charge of the Gov policy on tackling obesity. Give me your five point plan...

[MrsGrindah]

I’m sick of reading lots of vague pledges . What , in your experience , would work? NB I’m not Michael or Boris just interested having struggled with weight all my life. You don’t have to cost it etc..just what do you think would work if it could be done.

Mine would be:

1. Sugar fines or levies not taxes on producers of core foods eg processed food and drink manufacturing. Fines have a completely different association than taxes
2. Weight management education running through a variety of classes eg home Ed, biology, PE etc. at school and also part of any childcare classes
3. School meals to have complete overhaul. No pizza, chips etc. More expensive yes but cheaper than the cost of obesity
4. Zero tolerance on fat shaming in schools.
5. Doctors to have more rights to refuse treatment for weight related health problems ( unless life threatening) until patients agree to a weight loss plan of action that is supported by suitably trained healthcare professionals.

I'd have obese people given free access to their nearest Council run leisure centre.

I'd also have community "healthy cooking" classes available where you get to take home what you've made, free of charge.

I'd also have free access to after school exercise classes with a meal at the end in deprived areas.

Breakfast clubs and after school clubs giving healthy foods: think yoghurt with fruit instead of carb heavy cereals.

Complete rebalancing of the eatwell plate to reduce carbs and increase healthy fat intake. And by healthy, I mean natural (eg avocado, olive oil and animal fats) not industrialised seed oils (eg sunflower oil) that the body is not equipped to process.

Target low quality fake processed food; high sugar; cheap carb foods.

Target 'diet' and 'low fat' foods.

Educate people on what actually matters - BMR, TDEE, metabolic health. Educate people on the role of insulin in the body and get away from the idea that eating fat makes you fat. Etc.

Just stop selling overpriced crap/junk food that serves no benefit to our bodies. Many people take more care with what they feed their pets than what they feed themselves.

Oh and actually educate people on sugar content.

E.g. milk, yoghurt, fruit etc are all high in sugar and that sugar is no less bad for you than that found in cakes, sweets and fizzy drinks. The nutritional benefits found in those foods can be found elsewhere without the sugar.

And I'd add improve agricultural practises by supporting farmers so that people eat according to the season and to ensure that the ground we grow food in/raise livestock on ensures nutrient dense real food so that people rely less on processed crap.

I don't believe it's the responsibility of the Government to tackle obesity - I'm not a fan of nanny states. If you are an adult you should take responsibility for your own body.

1 invest a shed load of money into providing mental health help for obese people. Pretty much every person who is significantly overweight is badly in need of this.

2 A big campaign to encourage cooking from scratch and eating actual food rather than processed crap. This could include cooking lessons where necessary and lessons about nutrition. The focus should be on healthy eating, not Weight loss.

3 A ban on advertising "diets". We already know that diets don't work...the statistics are out there for anyone to find. slimming world, weight watchers, meal replacement shakes etc etc none of it works in the long term and these companies shouldn't be allowed to profit from making people believe that it does. All they do is contribute to already poor mental health.

4 subsidised gyms/bikes/whatever exercise appeals. Don't assume every overweight person wants to go to a gym...it'd be my idea of hell! I'd rather be able to swim cheaply.

5 Give us more time. More time to relax, more time to sleep, more time to stand and stare. Let sedentary office workers return to 9 to 5 rather than expecting them to sit at a desk for 12 hours and beyond. Reverse the no lunch break culture which is endemic in every office I've ever been in and make sure everyone gets a lunch hour where they can get outside and walk.

Massive drive to encourage intermittent fasting for adults. completely disagree with this. Faddy and unnatural weight loss practice is NOT helpful. This is not sustainable long term and fucks up metabolism.

Actually, everything I've read on the subject suggests that intermittent fasting can have huge benefits to metabolic health.

I don't believe it's the responsibility of the Government to tackle obesity - I'm not a fan of nanny states. If you are an adult you should take responsibility for your own body

Whilst i agree with this, there are caveats and motivations.

If the current government model of 'healthy eating' is inaccurate and the current medical advice is based upon outdated, biased research, for example, then the government very much has a role to play in addressing that. Otherwise, people are following inaccurate advice and still experiencing the same problems.

Mitigations not motivations

but even the shorter men & the ones that hate sport seem to be an okay weight

As I said also higher muscle mass and higher metabolism too, plus as you yourself said different hormonal balance

but since having my daughter last year it has crept on I also refer you back to my comments re pregnancy and thyroid disorders.

All the women in my family on one side are TINY until they have babies! Then they pile on the weight, and eventually have thyroid disease dx in their 50's/60's but realise they had the symptoms since after birth of first child. 2 couldn't have dc and they remained very slim their whole lives.

I really strongly believe it's NOT just women "eating for 2" that causes post pregnancy weight gain and there's precious little research on it!

but I'm going to keep an eye on it and once I hit 11st it will be time to cut the treats & really pay attention to my eating I would strongly recommend not doing this it's much easier to tackle earlier rather than later

A lot of shops ID kids for energy drinks personally I'd ban these altogether, they have some seriously dodgy ingredients that are banned in many other countries and are harmful to several organs.

Actually, everything I've read on the subject suggests that intermittent fasting can have huge benefits to metabolic health there's an awful lot on various topics on www that can be read or even in books which is complete nonsense! This is just one.

It's NOT how we are built to function, fasting is not healthy and not sustainable.

So why are there whole countries who don't seem to suffer from this horrendous gut flora issue? You'd be hard pushed to find anyone the size of some of the overweight people in Japan.

I would think the type of food eaten will play a part as this impacts gut flora. Japanese diet might be better for the gut flora. Worth some research I would think.

The experiment I mentioned is interesting because:

• not everyone gained the same amount of weight despite being carefully monitored by scientists - why? They don't know
• one person gained weight but it was ALL muscle not fat. Again scientists had no idea why.
• the prison experiment showed that despite increasing calories their weight did NOT increase once they plateaued and again scientists scratched their heads

All I am saying is it is more complex than some people think and more research would help understand the interactions better.

Cookery lessons compulsory in secondary schools . Stop the ridiculous eat out subsidy which is making fast food too cheap and boosting the profits of big companies and be honest and direct with people if they are overweight.

God yes, the eat out subsidy is looking even more foolish now!

More availability of surgery on the nhs
Massive investment in mental health services
Overhaul of school meals
More pe, health,wellbeing etc at school
Taxes on bad food and drink

Proper psychological help, life coaching. Tackle the cause. Me like most of the population know what is healthy and isn't its just not that easy. Emotional eating is a very hard thing to get rid of.

1. Healthy cooking classes throughout school.

DSs primary school has a mobile cooking station. Whenever his class has had it, they've made cakes or cookies. It could have been an opportunity to learn what is in a healthy balanced meal. But it's puddings instead.

DD had 2 terms of food tech. She learnt several named ways to chop a carrot and can name a dozen types of pasta. She didn't learn how to read food labels or check if meat is cooked.

1. Simplify food labels.

I know several people who cannot tell if something is healthy or not despite having the nutritional info in front of them. Sugar packed yoghurts that must be healthy because there's a strawberry on the tub, and chocolate covered cereal bars being considered a fitness food. (MIL in both cases couldn't understand why type 1 diabetic DS would need an insulin dose for both because 'it's healthy.')

1. A set plan of action to help children with a high BMI. Meal plans, exercise schedules and targets.

Years ago following DD1s weight and height check in reception, I had a call from a HV as her BMI was high. She was unable to give any practical advice, and just read me a copy of a letter that I had already received.

1. Weigh ins at medical appointments, and set target weights given.

Too many are probably in self denial of their weight.

5.funding for lower income families to take part in sports groups or gym memberships.

I really am finding it crazy that so many people are talking about what schools should do.
Yes prevention is better than cure but what should / could be done for the current generation of fat adults?

That really is passing the buck. I don't believe for a second that every who is posting pushing the responsibility onto schools is a normal weight adult with perfect shaped kids.

What serious help is out there or should be there for the average fatty. Yes I am a fatty too.

I think that for famlies where the weight is obviously getting passed on to the kids, they shoudl be offered a food check like in som eo fth elifestyle programmes.

There used to be one called You Are What You Eat, and it always struck me that once the put the whole diet on the table and looked at it, people started to see where the problem was.
They they taught them a set of simple meals, and then they came back and monitored.

I have no idea if it worked long term, but all this talk about educating slightly misses the point of how you get it from head to hands in terms of practical knowledge, not information given.

AND
I cook wel, from scratch mostly, we eat lots of fruit and veg, but I am overweight. That is due to snakcing between meals. It is also emotional, so none of these are easy problems to solve, there isn't one solution.

Portion sizes is another bug bear too.

The biggest difference between the overweight and slim people I know is money and time. Slimmer people have more money and more free time to cook or eat out as a treat rather than order from the local chippy. We're the fattest country in Europe and also have one of the longest working days in europe.

The only way the government can tackle obesity is to tackle the massive inequality in our country.

I've noticed myself when I have more time I eat better, sleep better and feel mentally healthier. When I'm working fifty hour weeks, twelve hour shifts I eat crap and feel crap. My motivation to do anything but sleep and work dwindles and the amount of takeout we eat rises compared to my aunt who is wealthier but works 8 hour days, fit days a week. She cooks most days, has time to go to the gym after work and even when she does turn to convenience food her budget allows her to chose fresher, healthier options.

Slow cookers are great and I use ours as much as I gave the energy to but when you're leaving the house at 5 45 am and not getting back until 7pm knowing you have to do it all again tomorrow youre unlikely to prepare the ingredients for a meat and veg curry to be slow cooked the next day.

We need more time, more equality and better public transport links. We don't need the government telling us what to eat. The vast majority of people know a home cooked meal is healthier than a pile of chicken nuggets laced with mayo.

1. Teach proper cookery in school, how food is grown/produced and a mandatory healthy eating course before 16.
2. Stop planning for all future fast food premises.
3. Free parking (and buses) at all parks, nature reserves etc...
4. Only allowing food vouchers to be used for fruit, veg and protein sources.
5. Encourage corner shops to stock fruit and veg maybe even a grant for fridges.

1. Help people value food and mealtimes, so much is about fast and 'on the go'.

1. Offer weight loss interventions I.e surgery and medication at a much earlier stage.

1. Focus on stop people becoming fat in the first place.

1. Reward self care such as exercise, meal and family time as much as working til midnight and lunch 'al desko'.

1. Remember that punitive actions has never really solved anything. Making people feel ashamed and useless isn't going to do anything to drive them to strive for a healthy life. Losing weight is hard enough without being punished with withdrawal of other treatments to better your health.

We're the fattest country in Europe and also have one of the longest working days in europe.

I'd totally agree you are onto something there. Long hours just equals people shoving junk into their mouths.

Fat isn't just related to poverty, it has to be more than just that. There are plenty with money who are fat.

The times I've gained weight in my lifetime are, buying a car (I didn't think I needed to adjust my food intake), working away from home (lots of meals out and take aways), and lockdown (easy access to the fridge).

I've only succeeded in losing weight once, living on my own and very loosely following Slimming World.

It's easy to gain weight much harder to shift it. I like 60% of the population need support now, not education in schools.

Fat isn't just related to poverty, it has to be more than just that. There are plenty with money who are fat

There's a strong link between poverty and obesity, although I agree the biggest factor is not money. Imo, it is time, which again links poverty. the working poor are more likely to work longer hours in physically demanding jobs. When I've finished a 12 shift in the care home the last thing I am doing is cooking from scratch. I tend to lean to every for man himself on those days i.e grab what you want from the freezer, heat it and pour mayo on it to make it palatable. When I work from home in my office job I cook a proper meal for the family.

And the unemployed are more likely to reach for a jumbo bag of chicken nuggets and frozen chip because its cheap, filling and takes very little power to cook. You'd be hard pushed to cook a full meal from scratch for the same price as a bag of Asda own brand nuggets and chips and a tin of budget custard with banana.

Gyms, leisure centers, fitnessclasses can be very intimidating when you are unfit and overweight. Running outdoors leads to inevitable piss-taking and comments.

I've been to spin classes and other classes which the literature promoted as suitable for beginners. They were anything but! Clearly filled with regulars who knew the routines by heart and were very slim and very fit.

So I'd say local beginners fitness classes heavily promoted and affordable, walking, c25k, etc with a focus on inclusivity, no judgement and positivity to get people engaged with exercise and fitness.

I think Town Planning could make a real change. I've got 4 ideas...

1. If places were designed around people walking to the shops, home, green spaces and work that would help a lot.
2. Less focus on planning around the car. Offer Councils money for pedestralising high streets.
3. Business rates for fast food outlets should be high - to reflect the cost to society (rubbish and obesity) they cause. I wouldn't ban them.
4. Give Councils/owners of large residential units money to convert huge empty premises like department stores into residential accommodation.

The bottom line is people need to be encouraged to be more active. Ages ago I read something that suggested we are not consuming many more calories than we did in the past. The difference is we aren't moving enough.

1. Ban cheap family sized bags of crisps and 'grab bags' of chocolate.

2. make bariatric surgery more accessible.

3. make gyms and swimming fb pools free

4. ban slim fast/herbal life/skinny jabs/Pootea etc

5. keep it as a 'hot' topic