Radical moves to cut child obesity, such as fast food bans in schools and lunchbox inspections, have been slammed as "mean-spirited, knee-jerk reactions" designed "to take the pleasure out of life", according to an influential Scottish think tank.  The Scottish Council Foundation will this week urge politicians to rethink their so-called 'war on obesity', arguing that there is little evidence that harsh policies designed to increase exercise and improve diet actually work.

 

Rather than "hectoring, blaming and shaming" fat people, governments should focus on improving the general wellbeing of children and the population at large, it will add.   In a report written for the think tank, Dr Michael Gard, an expert on physical education from Australia, also questions popular wisdom that parents are harming their children if they let them watch too much TV or play too many computer games.  There is no evidence, he claims, that excessive TV watching is linked to child obesity. Nor is there any proof, he says, that being overweight as a child leads to ill health as an adult.

The SCF uses the findings to urge ministers to pause before introducing more measures designed to cut down on obesity, particularly for children.  Dr Gard argues that wider social measures, such as ensuring easy access to recreational spaces and making people feel safer about their local area, are more likely to improve Scotland's health than further crackdowns.  He warns there is an "anti-anti-obesity" backlash, as the public grows tired of ever more intrusive policies.
“  We are.currently seeing a proliferation of unfortunate school-based anti-obesity policies around the western world. These include fitness testing, lunch box inspections by teachers, mandatory weighing of students, banning of particular kinds of food at school celebrations and remedial physical activity for students who do not meet prescribed fitness or weight standards," said Dr Gard.

 

"There certainly does appear to be an empirical case for delivering high-quality health, nutrition and physical activity programmes in schools. However, no such case exists for draconian, punitive and mean-spirited, knee-jerk reactions that simply serve to take some of the pleasure out of life."  Dr Gard adds: "My concern is that the intensity of talk about childhood obesity and the zeal of some physical activity advocates mean that many children will experience physical activity as, at best, medicine and, at worst, punishment."

 

Dr Gard claims he has already uncovered growing evidence in developed countries that the focus on obesity has sidelined good-quality PE lessons, with teachers instead putting children through overly strenuous 'huff and puff' fitness classes.  He claims there is no evidence to show that such classes have any effect on children in the long term.  

 

The number of obese children in Scotland is running at double the UK average, according to NHS statistics, with more than a third of 12-year-olds deemed to be overweight.  Campaigners warn that drastic measures are therefore necessary.  Colin Waine said: "I have got no problem with a holistic approach, but we can't get away from the fact that we are likely to see the first cut in life expectancy for 200 years as a result of the growth in obese children and young people. The best way of tackling this is to measure children from birth onwards so that you can pick up deviations from the normal and then take remedial action."

 

But Frauke Sinclair, of the Scottish Council Foundation, said:  "Amongst evidence of increasing prevalence of obesity, a proliferation of policies aimed at tackling obesity has not achieved the expected desired outcomes. While it is too soon after the 2007 Scottish Parliament election to comment on actions in relation to obesity by Scotland's new government, first impressions are that childhood obesity in particular will be a high priority for the Minister for Public Health."

 

Scottish ministers were recently praised by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver for the Hungry for Success programme, which has introduced health food into schools.  It is also now promoting more physical activity and insisting that all pupils get two hours of PE a week. Full-sugar fizzy drinks have also been banned in schools.  Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, Nicola Sturgeon, said: "We are making combating obesity, particularly early in life, a high priority. Many factors contribute to obesity, including diet, exercise, psychology, culture and environment, and we recognise they must all be taken into account in the prevention and treatment of this problem."