Eight out of 10 of the middle aged either weigh too much, drink too much or don’t exercise enough, as new analysis from Public Health England (PHE) published on 28 December 2016 shows modern life taking its toll on health.
PHE’s One You campaign is reaching out to the 83% of 40 to 60 year olds (87% of men and 79% of women) who are either overweight or obese, exceed the Chief Medical Officer’s (CMO) alcohol guidelines or are physically inactive, to provide free support and tools to help them live more healthily in 2017 and beyond. Modern life is harming the health of the nation: 77% of men and 63% of women in middle age are overweight or obese. Obesity in adults has shot up 16% in the last 20 years. Many also can’t identify what a ‘healthy’ body looks like, suggesting obesity has become the new normal. The diabetes rate among this age group also doubled in this period in England. Obese adults are more than 5 times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than those who are a healthy weight (a body mass index between 18.5 and 25). Ninety per cent of adults with diabetes have Type 24.
People are being urged to take a moment to consider their health and the simple steps they can take to improve it in the run up to the New Year, by taking the One You online quiz. People need to eat better, be more active, stop smoking and consider their drinking. The quiz, called ‘How Are You’, takes your lifestyle information, gives you a health score and then links to free localised, personalisable information, apps and tools.
More than 1.1 million people have taken the quiz so far and where appropriate, been directed to download PHE's apps like Couch to 5K, Alcohol Checker and Easy Meals. Nearly a quarter of a million people have subsequently downloaded Couch to 5K. These sit alongside PHE’s other online tools like the Heart Age tool which gives you your ‘heart age’ based on you age and lifestyle.
