Health: Obesity

Lord Robathan Excerpts

Thursday 20th July 2017 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Robathan]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent they attribute the slowing in the growth of life expectancy identified by Sir Michael Marmot to health issues related to obesity, such as type 2 diabetes.

[Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen (Con)]

My Lords, we agree with Sir Michael that it is difficult to draw conclusions about the causes of the slowing of growth in life expectancy at this stage. We will follow further research with interest. A number of factors contribute to the length of people’s lives, including having and maintaining a healthy weight. We know that obesity is a leading cause of serious diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.

[Lord Robathan (Con)]

My Lords, in the United States life expectancy is now declining. Where America leads, we often follow. There, there are no party political points made about this but rather a general acceptance that the major factor, among others, is obesity and linked conditions such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Will Her Majesty’s Government please redouble their efforts to educate the population, especially in schools and the NHS where they have authority, about the benefits of healthy eating and taking exercise in an attempt to avert the innumerable individual tragedies this will lead to and the terrible consequences for our health service and society?