Obesity time bomb not being taken seriously enough

Dublin Senator, Catherine Noone has today (Friday) called for action against Ireland’s obesity crisis.

“ The Lancet, one of the world’s leading general medical journals has recently published some shocking data on global obesity levels. This data ranks Ireland as fifth in Europe for obesity levels among girls and young women.

“Immediate action is needed to get this problem under control. There is no time for delay and there is certainly no time for complacency. It has been reported by some that although Ireland’s rate of obesity is worrying, it has yet to reach the dangerous levels found in many neighbouring countries. I believe that people who hold this opinion are taking the wrong approach.

“Obesity is unfortunately a growing problem in many countries, but on this occasion I don’t see any benefit in comparing the relative levels of crisis in one country to the other. On this issue we need to be honest with ourselves, to realise that we have a very real problem on our hands and to stop fooling ourselves by saying we’re badly off, but not as badly off as the man down the road.

“The fact that 22.9% of men and 22.5% of women in Ireland are obese poses a great many challenges for our healthcare systems in the future. We need to really begin emphasising how diet and exercise can help prevent problems for both the individual and the healthcare system. In this sense, we need city councils to place a serious emphasis on leisure and sport facilities.

“I am personally in favour of implementing meaningful incentives which will work to discourage people from making bad dietary choices. This is something I believe should be considered in the context of the annual budget.

“From a global perspective, there are over 2 billion people worldwide who are either obese or overweight. This poses a great many problems for healthcare in the future. It is essential that we tackle this problem, to improve people’s lifespan, quality of life and also to alleviate the inevitable pressure this epidemic will put on our already overworked health system.”