Wes Streeting warns weight loss jabs 'are not an alternative to exercise' - as damning figures reveal Brits are getting fatter

Wes Streeting warns weight loss jabs 'are not an alternative to exercise' - as damning figures reveal Brits are getting fatter
By: dailymail Posted On: October 06, 2024 View: 87

Wes Streeting has warned that weight loss jabs should not be used as an excuse to give up on healthy living – as figures reveal the nation is getting fatter.

The Health Secretary said diet and exercise must continue to play a major role and that obese people must not expect the NHS to ‘pick up the tab’.

Two in three Britons are classed as overweight or obese and NHS figures show people weigh about a stone more than 30 years ago.

The average middle-aged man weighs 14 stone and sports a 40 inch waist, while women aged 45 to 64 now weigh an average of 12 stone, with waists of 36 inches.

Mr Streeting’s intervention comes as the NHS prepares for the roll out of weight loss jabs to 1.6million patients.

Wes Streeting (pictured at Labour conference) warned diet and exercise must continue to play a major role in people's lives
The average middle-aged man weighs 14 stone and sports a 40 inch waist, while women aged 45 to 64 now weigh an average of 12 stone, with waists of 36 inches (file image)
Mounjaro could help users shed more than a quarter of their body weight in 18 months

 They will be available to the heaviest and sickest first, the Government said last week. 

HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR BODY MASS INDEX - AND WHAT IT MEANS 

Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on your weight in relation to your height.

For children and young people aged 2 to 18, the BMI calculation takes into account age and gender as well as height and weight.

Ethnicity can also affect the risk of some health conditions. For example, adults of Asian origin may have a higher risk of health problems at BMI levels below 25.

Standard Formula:

BMI = (weight in pounds / (height in inches x height in inches)) x 703

Metric Formula:

BMI = (weight in kilograms / (height in meters x height in meters))

Measurements:

Under 18.5: Underweight

18.5 - 24.9: Healthy

25 - 29.9: Overweight

30 or greater: Obese 

Studies have shown that Mounjaro, described as the ‘King Kong’ of fat-busting jabs, can help people lose up to 26 per cent of their body weight over 18 months.

Experts say the injections are a crucial weapon in tackling the obesity epidemic, which is estimated to cost the economy £27billion a year in health care and benefits for those out of work.

Mr Streeting told The Sunday Telegraph: ‘Obesity is a huge drag on the NHS, the economy, and the quality of people’s lives, so obesity jabs are an exciting innovation.

‘But we don’t want to encourage a dependency culture where people think it’s OK not to bother eating healthily or exercising because the NHS will pick up the tab and pay for their weight loss jab.’

He added: ‘People have the right to expect top quality healthcare, but also a responsibility to look after their own health, so we’ve got to get the balance right.’

Obesity is the second most common cause of preventable death after smoking and costs the health service £11.4billion per year, putting a ‘huge strain on NHS staff and resources’, according to the Health Secretary.

Both Wegovy and Mounjaro injections are licensed for obese adults and for those with a body mass index of at least 27 and weight-related health conditions.

Dr Clare Hambling, the NHS national clinical director for diabetes and obesity, described the latter as ‘one of the greatest public health issues we face in this country’.

She said action ‘is urgently needed across society to turn the tide on the rising [obesity] rates seen in recent decades and stop so many lives being cut short.’

Baby boomers live longer but have poorer health compared to earlier generations

Baby boomers are living longer than previous generations but are in poorer health.

A study has found those in their 50s and 60s are more likely to experience serious health problems than those born during or just before the Second World War.

Research carried out at University College London and the University of Oxford, published in The Journals of Gerontology, found that the younger group were more likely to have cancer, lung disease, heart problems, diabetes and high cholesterol.

 The findings are likely to add to growing calls drugs including liraglutide, which is currently prescribed to adults with a BMI over 30 on the NHS, are extended to include obese children.

However, side effects such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea, were common, occurring in eight out of ten children receiving liraglutide half in the placebo group.

More serious reactions were had by 12.5 per cent of those on the drug, compared to 7.7 per cent in the control group, causing one in ten on the jab giving up before the end of the trial.

Commenting on the findings, Dr Nerys Astbury, associate professor diet & obesity at the University of Oxford, said: ‘These promising findings open up the possibility that at some time soon there will be safe and effective medications available for treating obesity in children and adolescents.

‘Because treating children and adolescents living with obesity has the potential to have longer lasting health benefits, although these medications are currently costly, their value for reducing risk of conditions associated with obesity, and improving longer term health must be considered.

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