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Public Health (England)

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Mr. Evennett). Many years ago, I spent 10 years teaching in his constituency. When I go back now, I can see that people there are much healthier today than they were back then. We know that throughout history the greatest advances in human health have occurred not because of doctors, hospitals or even medicines, but because of improvements in public health, including clean drinking water, improved sanitation, better shelter and housing, enabling people in countries such as this to keep warm, and proper nutrition. There was a point in the second half of the 20th century in this country at which, with poverty falling and all the factors that I have just mentioned moving in the right direction, along with the onset of medicines for the epidemic diseases and increasing longevity, we looked forward to a time when we would have almost perfect health. Something else was happening at that time, however. With that increasing prosperity and consequent lifestyle changes, we were getting fatter. We are still getting fatter, and our children are getting fatter than ever. It is on that problem—obesity—that I wish to focus today. In 1976, in a consultation document on public health produced by the then Department of Health and Social Security, obesity was barely mentioned. It was considered a minor risk factor for coronary heart disease. By 2004, however, the Wanless report, ““Securing good health for the whole population””, said that obesity"““has the potential to be of equal importance to smoking as a determinant of future health.””" Since then, we have seen even greater changes regarding obesity. The key facts are that obesity reduces life expectancy by an average of nine years and is responsible for 9,000 premature deaths a year. The prevalence of obesity has trebled since the 1980s. Some 22 per cent. of men and 23.5 per cent. of women are now obese, and well over half all adults are either overweight or obese; that is 24 million people. Overweightness and obesity are also increasing among children. Almost 28 per cent. of children under 11 are overweight or obese, and 14 per cent. are obese. If we do not do anything about that, the number of affected children will continue to rise, and they will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. If current trends continue, at least one third of adults, one fifth of boys and one third of girls will be obese by 2020. I declare two interests in this debate. First, my wife works in public health for the Great Yarmouth and Waveney primary care trust. Secondly, a few years ago, I lost a lot of weight. I therefore feel that I can speak with some personal authority this evening, not because of the former—my wife’s job—but because of the latter. Some hon. Members will remember how I used to heave myself around the place, and one of our friends in the Press Gallery once wrote in a diary column that when I stood up I looked as if I had just eaten somebody for breakfast. I do not know how heavy I was back then, because bathroom scales stop at 20 stone—I was probably closer to 21 than 20 stone. By 2001, after I had got myself re-elected, I had had enough—I was fed up of spilling food at mealtimes on my tie, fed up of the difficulty of threading my way through crowded receptions. People have asked me how I lost the weight. The lesson is very simple. First, one should eat less. Secondly, one should think about what one eats, avoid fat and sugar—if one does not want to be fat, one should not eat fat, or not a lot of it—and try not to eat between meals. People have said to me, ““Why don’t you write a book called, ‘The Politician’s Diet’. It might sell a few copies among the others.”” It is no good going on a diet: if one does, when one comes off it, the weight goes back on. The point is to change one’s approach to food.