The UK is getting a bit of a reputation when it comes to nutrition – and not a good one. The NHS website, no less, carries an article under the headline ‘Britain: the fat man of Europe’ which points out the fact that the UK now has the highest level of obesity in Western Europe.
That obesity level has more than trebled in the last 30 years, with about a quarter of adults classed as obese and experts predicting that this could rise to more than half of the population by 2050.
With this crisis in mind, our attitudes towards food, nutrition and our lifestyle are crucial. If we’re ever to remove the unwanted tag of being the ‘fat man of Europe’ then we need to understand how we view all of these things – and set about improving our position.
A study from sports nutrition firm Fysiqal has delved into these very issues, with a survey to uncover the nation’s ‘nutritional values’. It has found that we’re certainly not happy with the state of play. Indeed, 70 per cent of people in Cardiff say they are unhappy with their weight – one of a number of cities where the majority of the population are unhappy with the numbers they see on their scales.
Indeed, women seem least happy with their waistline – with 59 per cent saying they are unhappy with their weight. That’s in sharp contrast with men, with 39 per cent of males saying they’re not satisfied with their weight.
Almost half of the population – 46.1 per cent – say they have tried a fad diet at least once in a bid to shed a few pounds – while 23.7 per cent of men and 21.4 per cent of women exercise at least once a day.
The figures paint a picture of a confused nation. Many of us are not happy with our personal weight – just as the nation is surely unhappy to have a reputation for obesity. We’ve tried diets but need to do more to adopt the right healthy lifestyle required to deliver the bodies we want.
Is there a solution to turn all of this around? If there is, it needs to be embraced sooner rather than later…
Brought to you by Fysiqal Nutrition
