Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-09-24-Speech-3-416"
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"en.20080924.34.3-416"2
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"More than half of the population of Europe is overweight. According to the statistics, almost 27% of men and 38% of women are considered overweight and more than 5 million children are obese. A total of 5-7% of expenditure on healthcare is directly associated with obesity and this represents billions. It is this worrying fact that makes it essential to adopt resolute initiatives at all levels to curtail this phenomenon.
I welcome the Commission’s steps to adopt the White Paper, clearly shifting the field of diet, excessive weight and obesity to the level of a political priority for the European Union, and I am of the opinion that we can achieve progress in the fight against obesity by coordinating the different sectoral policies at European level.
I should like to draw attention to the problem of overweight children and young people: this age group should be one of the priorities. Correct diet and physical exercise are prerequisites for normal growth and healthy development in children. Education in healthy eating is mainly the responsibility of parents, but schools can also play a part in this regard. They should constitute another centre of activities in the fight against obesity.
I agree with the rapporteur’s view that schools should have a doctor, a nutrition specialist, on the premises. I also favour a ban on the sale of excessively fatty, salty and sugary products in schools, where they are available in particular in vending machines. According to the statistics, young people today spend more than five hours a day in sedentary activities, mainly watching television and playing on computers. Exercise, on the other hand, increases the deposition of calcium in the bones, develops children’s social skills and is an important factor in the fight against stress. It is important to create school conditions whereby sufficient time can be set aside every day for physical education and to encourage children to take part in sport, for example through the construction of playing fields and sports halls. These steps are essential if we wish to prepare a healthy future for our young generations.
I shall conclude by saying that the prevention of obesity requires at least one peaceful healthy meal in the family circle cultivating, above all, healthy habits."@en1
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