Boris puts the nation on a diet

Gastric bands on the menu to tackle Covid deaths

MORe gastric band surgery could be offered on the NhS under plans to reduce the impact of a second wave of coronavirus.

Boris Johnson will reveal plans to tackle the country’s obesity crisis next month, including possible wider use of weight loss operations and banning unhealthy food promotions.

he is expected to announce a national diet as part of a more interventionist policy with preventative and personalised solutions to help the overweight.

Mr Johnson, who ended up in intensive care with coronavirus, is said to be convinced that his weight was to blame.

Plans to beat obesity could include mandatory food labelling in restaurants and on takeaways, banning buy one get one free deals and launching family exercise schemes. experts believe the nation’s bulging waistline is a key factor in the UK having the highest coronavirus death toll in europe.

Some 78 per cent of confirmed cases and 62 per cent of virus deaths in hospitals involved overweight or obese patients. And research has also found that those with type 2 diabetes – which is linked to diet and lifestyle – are twice as likely to die from the virus than otherwise healthy patients.

Britain’s spiralling obesity crisis means two in three adults and one in three children are now overweight or obese.

health officials have presented a series of proposals to ministers including a ban on unhealthy price promotions, improving healthy eating programmes and outdoor gyms.

Bariatric clinics have reported a surge in inquiries during the pandemic, while doctors called for a rapid expansion in NhSfunded weight loss surgery to reduce the impact of the virus.

Patients are currently eligible for free gastric band surgery if they are severely obese with a BMI of 40 or more, or between 35 and 40 with a serious condition like type 2 diabetes that might improve if they lost weight. They must also have made significant efforts with dieting and exercise first.

But the criteria could soften if proposals to expand the service are given the green light.

‘All the focus and energy is going to be on getting the nation fitter because, as coronavirus has shown us, it will save lives,’ a Department of health source told the Sunday Times.

‘People have gone to extraordinary lengths to remain safe, so encouraging them to eat more healthily and take more exercise should not be that difficult.

‘If people want to do their bit to beat this virus, then losing weight would be the best thing they can do.’

Mr Johnson’s suggestion of a more interventionist approach comes despite his criticism of the ‘nanny state’ and the sugar tax on soft drinks.

One of his longstanding advisers said that the Prime Minister’s own battle with his waistline gives him ‘ permission to speak’ to voters about the need to lose weight.

‘Getting fitter will save lives’