Concern about growing childhood obesity in the UK has led to a group of MPs saying the government must do more to reduce the number of cut-price and multi-buy offers on unhealthy food to help curb this trend. The report, by the Health Select Committee, also calls for rules on junk food advertisements to be made tougher.
The BBC reported that they said the government’s official obesity plan contains ‘vague statements’ that were inadequate, even though they added that the strategy is the world’s ‘most ambitious plan on childhood obesity’.
In the latest Health Select Committee report, MPs made further calls for curbs on big discounts and price promotions on unhealthy food, citing evidence from the food industry that responsible retailers were being disadvantaged by those who continued to offer discounts on food high in sugar and fat.
The main features of the childhood obesity plan, released last October, were a sugar levy and a voluntary target to cut sugar in children’s food and drink by 20% by 2020. Health organisations and campaigners were almost universally of the view that there should have been wider action.
While some might be tempted by pricing and availability of sugary foods, maintaining a correct and healthy diet, linked to an exercise regime, can help children keep a healthy lifestyle and avoid the obesity trap. But quite often the fault lies in what the parents provide for either packed school lunches or meals at home.
The National Council for Hypnotherapy says managing weight loss is one of the most effective results of clinical hypnotherapy, adding that instead of a fad diet which will show a reduction in calorie intake for a short time, hypnotherapy can help create healthy self-management techniques and increase the motivation for exercise.
Hypnotherapy, says the NCH, can ‘also help you reduce portion sizes so you lose weight healthily, steadily and for the long term’.
“Losing weight with hypnosis is essentially about teaching you to feel good about yourself, whatever size you are. It focuses on making healthy changes to your diet and lifestyle that will remain with you for the rest of your life.”
Part of a bad diet can be too much sugar intake and hypnotherapy can help cure this unwanted habit or addiction. Effective clinical hypnotherapy can break a sugar addiction or the ‘sweet tooth’ effect.
Says the NCH: “Hypnotherapy changes the root of your compulsive eating or lack of interest in exercise so you are free to enjoy the rest of your life, allowing you to eat sensibly and exercise without thinking about it.”
The MPs also suggested a range of measures to regulate junk food adverts seen by children on TV, such as extending current restrictions to apply across all programmes that children are likely to watch rather than to just programming specifically aimed at children.
They also recommended the levy on sugary drinks should be extended to milk-based drinks that have added sugar.
Committee chairman Dr Sarah Wollaston said: “We are extremely disappointed that the government has rejected a number of our recommendations.
“These omissions mean that the current plan misses important opportunities to tackle childhood obesity.”