Healthier choices in local hospitals.
“Doctors are increasingly concerned about the impact of poor diet on the nation’s health. This is not only a significant cause of ill health and premature mortality, but a considerable strain on NHS resources … The burden of diet-related ill health in the UK is substantial, estimated to lead to 70,000 premature deaths annually, which represents around 12 per cent of the total number of deaths. Poor diet has the highest impact on the NHS budget, costing around £6 billion per year, greater than alcohol consumption, smoking and physical inactivity. The majority of children, young people and adults in the UK are not eating a healthy diet. One in five children start school overweight or obese, and a third of children leave primary school overweight or obese. Nearly two thirds of adults in the UK are overweight or obese. Of particular concern is the high intake of saturated fat, added sugars and salt; and insufficient levels of fruit, vegetables, fibre and oily fish. An unhealthy dietary pattern is strongly associated and causally linked with a number of chronic, complex conditions such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, cancer and type II diabetes.” British Medical Association
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