One in four nurses is obese, research shows

MORE than a quarter of NHS nurses are obese, with healthcare professionals more likely to be dangerously overweight than their patients, research suggests.

Experts said the findings were “deeply worrying” and warned that patients would find it hard to stomach health advice from medics who are overweight themselves.

The research, by London South Bank University and Edinburgh Napier University, showed that 25.1 per cent of nurses in England were obese, with a body mass index (BMI) score of more than 30, compared with rates of 23.5 per cent in the general population.

Rates for unregistered care workers – such as care home staff and nursing assistants – were even higher, with one in three obese.

Published in the journal BMJ Open, the study looked at the 20,000 working-age adults who took part in the Health Survey for England between 2008 and 2012.

Researchers said the high rates of obesity were likely to be fuelling sickness levels in the NHS, with excess weight increasing the risk of musculoskeletal and mental health conditions – some of the main causes of sickness absence within the health service.

Dr Richard Kyle, from Edinburgh Napier University, who co-authored the report, said: “Obesity is a global pandemic and healthcare professionals are at the heart of efforts to bring down high levels of obesity. That one in four nurses in England have been found to be obese is deeply worrying, not least because we know that obesity is linked to diseases such as cancer, cardio-vascular disease, and diabetes.”

Tam Fry, from the National Obesity Forum, said repeated attempts to encourage overweight staff to shed the pounds had failed. He said: “When a quarter of qualified health professionals find it impossible to maintain a healthy BMI, no one should be surprised if the majority of us find it difficult too.

“Instead of hectoring people to live healthily, the Government should be making it easier for them to do so,” he said.

Kim Sunley, from the Royal College of Nursing, said: “There is no doubt obesity is a major public health issue, and we know nurses sometimes struggle to make healthy choices due to long hours, shift work and stress.”