This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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'Get fit, not fat', obesity symposium is told
31/01/2003
The Executive is backing preventative measures to ensure that adults and children in Scotland "get fit, not fat", a symposium was told today.
Deputy First Minister Jim Wallace underlined the Executive's commitment to tackling the problem of obesity through two of its root causes - diet and physical activity.
A "climate of change" needs to be created, he said, in order to stimulate enthusiasm and demand for healthier lifestyles across Scotland and to ensure all Scots have access to healthy food choices and are supported to become more activity.
At a symposium jointly hosted by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and the Public Health Institute of Scotland, Mr Wallace said:
"The increasing levels of obesity in Scotland is very frightening, and has huge health implications for our quality of life as individuals as well as our health service and productivity as a nation.
"In Scotland, we still opt for diets higher in fat than the rest of Europe, with a marked deficiency of fruit and vegetables.
"Physical inactivity is another major factor, with more than two-thirds of the adult population putting their health at risk by being below the minimum recommended levels of physical activity.
"Although there are many reasons for today's less active lifestyles, the reality is that an active lifestyle is not too difficult to achieve - it can be as simple as going for regular walks.
"The potential health gains through increasing activity levels are considerable, for example, reducing the risk of coronary heart diesase, and enhancing mental health. We need to act now, and while the treatment of obesity is important, I believe the focus for wider action must be on prevention.
"The Executive is committed to an integrated approach to health improvement, which recognises that problems - such as ill health, substance abuse, diet - are often interlinked. We are no longer tackling each contributor to ill-health as a separate entity. Partnership working will be the key to success, involving agencies, local authorities, NHS Boards, the voluntary sector and community groups. We all have an important part to play.
"Much work is currently underway - the 'healthy living' campaign we launched earlier this month, our work with the food industry to ensure adequate access to affordable healthier food and our National Strategy for Physical Activity to be launched next month. Despite the size of the task, we can make a difference. We don't have to face a future of obesity in Scotland."
The Executive's National Healthy Eating Campaign (healthyliving) was launched on January 7, 2003.
The Executive's Physical Activity Strategy will be launched by the First Minister in February. The Strategy embraces the recommendations made in the Physical Activity Task Force's report 'Let's Make Scotland More Active', published in June 2002.