Population-level Interventions Based on Walking and Cycling as a Means to Increase Physical Activity

Figures & Tables

Obesity prevalence rates for each area in England 2011/12.

The rate of children obese and overweight around the UK (Reinhardt-Rutland, 2011).

Country	Year	Age	Obese %		Overweight%		Data source
Country	Year	Age	Boys	Girls	Boys	Girls	Data source
England	2011	2–15	16.6	15.9	31.4	28.5	Health Survey for England, 2011
Scotland	2011	2–15	17.5	13.7	34.5	28.5	Scottish Health Survey, 2011
Wales	2011	2–15	20.7	17.8	36.2	34.3	Welsh Health Survey, 2011
Northern Ireland	2005	2–15	20	15	39	31	Northern Ireland Health and well-being survey 2005

The policy implications of some key obesity theories.

Theory Core argument	Implied solutions
Changing in lifestyle is linked to the development of a post-industrial consumerist society Once adequately wealthy, people will be able to tackle obesity as consumers, choosing or not, as they wish. Partly, fiscal measures such as ‘fat taxes’ could be considered	Technological
Obesity is a normal physiological response to an abnormal or inappropriate environment	Change the physical and dietary environments to allow normal physiological balance to (re)emerge
The predisposition to store fat is an evolutionary legacy	Genomics, nutrigenomics and gene mapping. Functional foods might help play a role in tailoring diets to individual predispositions
Marketing and advertising instils new cultural norms about what and how to eat, and how much to eat	Social marketing can emulate ‘business’ marketing
Psychosocial Food choice is intensely personal and expresses identity. Obesity suggests a schism within identity well-being. Family change. Counselling. This is required both individually and on a mass scale	Obesogenic
Oil is replacing food as a source of energy	Build in more physical energy use into daily life. Design technology to help keep balance between intake and expenditure.