Obesity crisis placing huge strain on services

Scotland’s obesity epidemic has the potential to “bankrupt” the NHS unless urgent action is taken to manage the problem.

Ninewells Hospital-based consultant endocrinologist and diabetes expert Dr Chris Schofield, 39, said the NHS was heading for a “real mess” unless there is a cultural sea change in responsive treatment and, for the majority of cases, the education to prevent the problems from happening in the first place.

With about 10% of the entire NHS budget currently spent on dealing with obesity-related health problems, Dr Schofield said the trends were a “sign of the times” resulting largely from poor diet, inactivity, social inequality and a culture where people were “strapped to their desks for eight hours a day”.

In addition to the massive financial impact for the NHS, there’s the social cost to people as well.

However, he said the Daily Mile initiative for Scottish primary school children was an example of how simple steps could not only improve fitness but also improve mental health.

Manchester-raised Dr Schofield believes Scotland’s devolved NHS is beneficial because “Scotland has particular health needs that are not relevant to the rest of the UK and in that case, managing our local needs probably makes a lot more sense”.

He said the chief medical officer’s Realistic Medicine programme was a key strategy – putting the patient at the heart of discussions around treatment and finding cheaper non-medicinal solutions where possible.

With the NHS “creaking and struggling”, he said that undoubtedly some “very difficult choices” had to be made about what it can and cannot supply.

However, he doesn’t believe punitive measures are practical. He added: “The amount of people I meet who say ‘I eat what I eat because that’s what I can afford’. I have no control over that. ‘Well, you’ve fed your family and you’ve kept them alive for another week’ – who am I to argue with that?”

Dr Chris Schofield, consultant endocrinologist at Ninewells.