Obesity is on the increase all over the developed world, the latest country to express anxiety being Japan, where, as elsewhere, improved diet and exercise are being advocated by the medical experts.
The problem of overweight and obesity in children is engaging much attention both in the United States and in the United Kingdom. In adults from the age of 18 there is growing evidence of a trend towards greater body mass. The prevalent view is that efforts to prevent the development of obesity should be initiated in early childhood. This is expressed in a paper by nutritionists from Glasgow and Bristol, published in the British Medical Journal for October 16.
According to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association for October 13, from Atlanta, more than two thirds of US adults are trying to lose or maintain weight, but only one fifth of those are making serious attempts to reduce their calorie uptake while undertaking at least 150 minutes of leisure time physical activity each week. This recommended combination of measures appears unpopular. In a review it was found that 76 per cent of men and 82 per cent of women claimed to be eating less than before, while about 60 per cent of either sex reported increasing their physical activity. A common strategy, however, was to eat less fat, which is ineffective unless overall calorie intake is also reduced, since there is a tendency to cut down on one food constituent while replacing it by another.
It is generally agreed that a key factor in reducing obesity is regular physical exercise. In the US the minimum recommended is 150 minutes every week. It is found that recourse to exercise is least common among those people who are already obese, those of less education, and the older individuals. The environmental and societal influences which have reduced people's physical activity are excessive recourse to the motor car, labour saving domestic devices like washing machines and cleaning gadgets, and a vast increase in television and video viewing, which is necessarily a sedentary occupation. When the advent of "fast foods" is added to such influences, the result is an extremely unhealthy life style.