Childhood obesity

Weighty matters that cannot be ignored

guardian.co.uk, Sunday June 15 2003 09.36 BST

You were right to highlight the massive rise in obesity and diabetes levels (Focus, last week). A woman in the lowest income bracket is twice as likely to be obese than a woman in the highest. Poor people eat poor diets. For example, only 4 per cent of women claiming benefits eat the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

There are many reasons. Healthy foods cost more than less healthy foods; access to supermarkets (which sell 83 per cent of fruit and vegetables) can be impossible for the 68 per cent of those living on income support without a car.

While the Department of Health feebly promotes its Five a Day message, the food industry spends $40 billion a year, mainly promoting foods and drinks high in fat, salt and sugar.

What of the reform of the Welfare Food scheme? Will £2.80 worth of fruit and vegetables a week for pregnant women and babies really make a dent in rising levels of childhood malnutrition and obesity? We are at the threshold of a serious problem. The Government must take a serious look at the wider picture.
Courtney Van de Weyer
Food Poverty Project
London N1

Getting children more active should not be the preserve of schools and sport is not the only useful activity.

We need to focus on walking and cycling, and on space for children to play. The Government should work to ensure that streets are safer to walk, cycle and play in. This means enforced lower speed limits, measures to clean up dog-fouled, litter-ridden public spaces and giving children legal priority on residential streets. These things, combined with sport and healthy diets, will allow children to be active enough to achieve normal body weights. Anyone who doubts this should visit Denmark or the Netherlands where many of these measures have been part of public policy for a long time.
Dr Paul Docherty
Scott Road Medical Centre
Selby
North Yorkshire

Parents would be happy to abandon the school car run if schools could provide safe and secure storage for coats, bags, sports equipment and text books which our children have to lug between classrooms and homes. It's no good having fit children if in later life their backs give out.
Nicola Grove
London N2