12 Sep 2018 BANT Unsurprised UK Leads the Way in European Obesity as Food Industry Continues to Exploit Regulatory Loopholes
We are delighted that Tom Watson, MP is calling for a consultation on how to better approach the growing obesity and Type 2 Diabetes crisis and BANT (British Association for Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine) will actively participate in any actions that will improve our nation’s health. BANT and its over 2,500 members are saddened but not surprised that Britain has ranked 3rd in the European obesity rankings.
Public Health England’s (PHE) Sugar Reduction Progress Report shows a 2% reduction in free sugars but bizarrely no reduction in calories from those same free sugars. BANT is concerned that the food industry is taking advantage of regulatory loopholes to reformulate their products, especially using glycemic Maltodextrin.
According to Diabetes UK, the prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes has more than doubled since 1996 (https://tinyurl.com/ybxfvk8m). The same source states that there are now over 600 UK children diagnosed with this chronic disease, that was formerly known as ‘Adult Onset Diabetes’. Type 2 Diabetics are expected to shorten their life expectancy by an average of 10 year from linked chronic diseases. Furthermore, only recently, a survey by the OECD stated that 30% of the British child population would be obese by 2030 (https://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Obesity-Update-2017.pdf). It is not difficult to imagine the cost burden to the NHS in relation to treating lifestyle diseases and heartache at personal level.
In June this year, BANT launched a petition ( https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/225684) calling for glycemic Maltodextrin to be included within the Sugar Tax legislation. glycemic Maltodextrin is not classified as a sugar, so shows as ZERO grams of sugar on a food label, yet it can act like a free sugar in the body. It has a huge glycemic hit spiking blood sugar and insulin enormously. It is prolific in our food as a fat substitute, thickening agent or filler, and is an ingredient in things like desserts, sauces, salad dressings, processed foods, coffees, teas, powdered soft drinks, and sports drinks.
Help BANT get glycemic Maltodextrin included within the Sugar Tax legislation to protect our nation’s health by signing this petition: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/225684
BANT continues its clarion call for Government Agencies and politicians from every political divide, to promote the consumption of healthy ingredients and unprocessed foods, disassociating political and commercial interests from our public health agenda.
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NOTES TO EDITORS:
The British Association for Nutrition and Lifestyle Medicine (BANT) is the professional body for Registered Nutritional Therapy Practitioners. Its primary function is to assist its members in attaining the highest standards of integrity, knowledge, competence and professional practice, in order to protect the client’s interests; nutritional therapy; and the registered nutrition practitioner.
BANT continues to promote its Wellbeing Guidelines campaign to encourage the British people to eat more individual ingredients and unprocessed food. Going back to some old-fashioned values, such a family meal times and improving the nations cooking skills to use fresh ingredients, will go a long way to help the obesity targets and health of the individuals.
BANT experts carefully developed these Wellbeing Guidelines, based on the latest science and research in the field of nutrition for optimal health. The BANT Wellbeing Guidelines were specifically designed to provide clear, concise, easy to understand information, avoiding outdated information and research, and addressing some of the most common health concerns. The most frequent reasons people seek nutritional advice is for weight management and/ or for general health and wellbeing. These issues are addressed by BANT with these guides:
- THE WELLNESS SOLUTION (https://bant.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/WELLNESS-SOLUTION-IMAGE.jpg)
- FIGHT THE FAT / BEAT THE BLOAT (WEIGHT LOSS) (https://bant.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/FIGHT-THE-FAT-IMAGE.jpg)
BANT Registered Nutrition Practitioners are regulated by the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) that holds an Accredited Voluntary Register (AVR) for the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA). A recent report by the Royal Society for Public Health and the Professional Standards Agency made a key recommendation that AVR practitioners have the authority to make direct NHS referrals, in appropriate cases, to ease the administrative burden on GP surgeries.
As members of the CNHC Accredited Register, BANT Registered Nutrition Practitioners and other CNHC registrants, are the key workforce asset to harness 21st century lifestyle medicine to tackle the rising tide of stress related fatigue, obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, dementia and other chronic diseases.
To find a BANT practitioner, please click here: https://practitioner-search.bant.org.uk/
