A new survey out today has revealed that Scotland has the highest obesity rate in the UK at 25.5 per cent. This makes Scotland second only to the US when it comes to obesity levels and it would appear that the problems are starting early with childhood obesity reaching alarming proportions. The Scottish Executive has decided to take action and you will never guess what they are suggesting! Healthy fish which is rich in omega 3 will be served in schools once every three weeks and fried foods will be reduced to three times a week, with chips only being served as part of a “balanced diet.” Somehow, I don’t think that this “radical” move is going to have any impact on Scotland’s obesity crisis. How about cutting out fried food and chips completely? The kids probably get plenty of that at home anyway!
You would think that carrying all that weight around would be incentive enough for people to avoid a high fat diet, never mind the wider health consequences. Obese people are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, have raised blood pressure and suffer strokes.
Although England is behind Scotland in the obesity stakes, there is no room for complacency as the obesity rate is 22.5 per cent there.
Whilst schools can do their best to serve healthy meals to the children, this will not stop parents pushing junk food through the railings at lunchtime as we saw in various places in England after the implementation of healthier options at schools. At the end of the day, we have to acknowledge that we cannot shove junk food down our throats (as delicious as some of it might be) without reaping the consequences in later life!