UK’s doctors have called for a 20 percent tax on soft drinks and have asked for junk food advertisements to be banned.
UK’s doctors have called for a 20 percent tax on soft drinks and have asked for junk food advertisements to be banned.
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, which represents almost every one of the UK's 220,000 doctors, have also asked for fewer fast food outlets near schools and have asked for a ban on unhealthy snack in hospitals as a countermeasure to the country's rising obesity rates.
According to the academy, obesity is the greatest public health crisis facing the UK. One in four adults is obese, and these figures are only expected to rise. According to the academy, by 2050 60 percent of men, 50 percent of women and 25 percent of children will be obese.
"The consequences of obesity include diabetes, heart disease and cancer and people are dying needlessly from avoidable diseases," wrote the academy, the Guardian reported.
Professor Terence Stephenson, chairman of the academy, said that the report was not a full solution to obesity, and that there is no "silver bullet" to tackling widespread obesity, the BBC reported.
However, the Food and Drink Federation, which represents industry leaders and manufactures, said that the academy's report didn't add much to the current debate, pointing out that the report didn't recognize the role alcohol played in obesity, and that it made no mention of increasing exercise.
英国众多医生呼吁对软饮料加税20%，并禁止发布垃圾食品广告。
英国皇家医学院学会呼吁减少学校附近的快餐店数量，禁止在医院内贩卖不健康的快餐，以应对英国不断增长的肥胖率。该学会代表着英国几乎全部22万名医生。
该学会表示，肥胖症是英国面临的最大公共健康危机。1/4的英国成年人过度肥胖，据估计这一比例还在上升。该学会预计，到2050年，60%的英国男性、50%的女性和25%的儿童会过度肥胖。
据《卫报》报道，“肥胖可引发糖尿病、心脏疾病和癌症，现在有很多人死于一些可避免的疾病。”
据英国广播公司报道，该学会的主席特伦斯-斯蒂文森教授说，该报告无法完全解决肥胖症问题，对于普遍存在的肥胖问题，目前还没有“良方”。
但食品和饮料联合会表示，这份报告对目前的争论并没有什么实际意义。该联合会指出，这份报告没有意识到酒精在肥胖症中的角色，而且也没有提到让人们多锻炼身体。该联合会代表着这一行业的领军人物和生产商。
silver bullet: 良方，高招