---

Dept of Health

Answer

Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department gives to directors of public health and general practitioners about the appropriate use of (a) traditional diets, (b) exercise, (c) formula slimming foods, (d) surgery and (e) slimming drugs, as part of the strategic response to the problem of overweight and obesity. [49315] Yvette Cooper: [holding answer 18 April 2002]: The balance of good health food model, which is based on current Government guidelines for healthy eating, has been widely disseminated. The national quality assurance framework for exercise referral systems was published in April 2001. General practitioners were notified of the guidelines through the GP bulletin, which is sent to all GPs in England. The document offers guidance to primary care and fitness professionals, who work together to offer tailored exercise and physical activity programmes to patients whose health would benefit from increased exercise. In 1987, a committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy (COMA) report was published on very low calorie diets (VLCD). The report highlighted that a major criticism of VLCDs is that individuals frequently re-gain any weight lost after the diet has ended. A recent report by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP 1998) on "clinical management of overweight and obese patients" supported the findings of the COMA panel. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) has provided guidance on two anti-obesity drugs sibutramine and orlistat. Their guidance means patients can expect more equal access to these drugs in the future. NICE is currently reviewing the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of surgery for morbid obesity, and is due to report later this year.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

49315; 384 c990-1W;384 c991-2W

Session

2001-02

Subjects

Diets Food Nutrition Physical education Obesity Exercise Public health

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk