Professor Julian Le Grand, chair of Health England, says a completely fresh approach is required to reverse the epidemic of obesity...

Unveiled: radical prescription for our health crisis

Extract from the article in the Independent:

"A radical plan to persuade people to stop smoking, take more exercise and change their diets was proposed last night by a leading Government adviser.

As new figures were published yesterday showing that England tops the European league as the fattest nation in the EU, Professor Julian Le Grand, chair of Health England and a former senior Downing Street aide to Tony Blair, said a completely fresh approach was required by Government to reverse the epidemic of obesity and to tackle similar ills caused by "excess consumption".

In a speech to the Royal Statistical Society last night, Professor Le Grand said instead of requiring people to make healthy choices – by giving up smoking, taking more exercise and eating less salt – policies should be framed so the healthy option is automatic and people have to choose deliberately to depart from it.

Among his suggestions are a proposal for a smoking permit, which smokers would have to produce when buying cigarettes, an "exercise hour" to be provided by all large companies for their employees and a ban on salt in processed food.

The idea, dubbed "libertarian paternalism", reverses the traditional government approach that requires individuals to opt in to healthy schemes. Instead, they would have to opt out to make the unhealthy choice, by buying a smoking permit, choosing not to participate in the exercise hour or adding salt at the table."

Let us consider the professor's suggestion to reduce obesity, namely participation in an exercise hour. - Exercise can be beneficial in many ways, but it has no effect in reducing obesity. - Exercise has nothing to do with preventing obesity - Forget about it! - Obesity is NOT caused by overeating or by inactivity. It is caused by fluid retention, frequently because of taking prescribed medications, especially steroids such as prednisolone, prednisone and HRT, and anti-depressants such as amitriptyline. (When doctors prescribe drugs that cause sodium retention and water retention they should warn the patient not to eat salt, or food containing salt, while taking the medication. When they do not give this warning, the inevitable consequence is considerable weight gain.)

Read here about the groups of people who are vulnerable to salt: vulnerable groups

Obesity can be easily reduced by seriously reducing your salt/sodium intake and eating plenty of fruit and fresh vegetables. - It is important not to restrict calories. - 'Slimming' or 'dieting' is unnecessary, ineffective and harmful.

So you will realise that I am enthusiastically in favour of a ban on salt in processed food. - This is what steroid victims and other salt-sensitive people desperately need.

However, Prof Le Grand, apparently, is advocating the salt ban in order to reduce incidence of high blood pressure - which it would - and not informing people that salt reduction is the fastest, safest, most reliable way of losing excess weight. - If the salt ban were to be implemented, obesity would be reduced, but presumably the reduction would falsely be attributed to the exercise hour!...)o:

But people desperately need to be told the TRUTH!

Also, Professor Le Grand, an excellent way to reduce the incidence of morbid obesity would be to curb the reckless prescribing habits of doctors. - See above.

See my website http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/.html
(The site does not sell anything and has no banners or sponsors
or adverts - just helpful information.)

vulnerable groups

How to Lose weight!

Children and Obesity

Read my Mensa article on Obesity and the Salt Connection

See Sodium in foods and

Associated health conditions and

http://www.wildeaboutsteroids.co.uk/story.html - my 'political' page

I can be contacted via my website if you need my further help.

My help is free.