Should there be more PE at school and clearer labelling?

A recent ComRes poll has indicated that a third (34%) of Britons believe that increasing the amount of mandatory physical education in schools would be one of the most effective ways of reducing levels of obesity. 33% also suggest that clearer food labelling would also help address obesity within the UK. At the moment, schools in the UK must include PE in their curriculums, however they are allowed to decide how much time is spent in these lessons, after the government target of 2 hours a week was scrapped five years ago.

Further to this, 23% thought that a ban on junk food advertising before the watershed would also aid in the fight against obesity. Similar percentages (24% and 21% respectively) would also like to see supermarkets lend their weight to the fight by encouraging the purchase of healthy items and introducing bans on promotion of unhealthy foods. Barbara Dinsdale, Head of Lifestyle at heart Research UK explained that Britons want to see clear information and to be incentivised to make healthy choices. The poll itself was conducted in partnership with the launch of the annual JanUary campaign (formerly National Obesity Awareness Week), which is championed by the National Obesity Forum and Heart Research UK.