New poll: One in three Britons unwilling to make changes to reduce sugars intake

New poll: One in three Britons unwilling to make changes to reduce sugars intake

One in three Britons would be unwilling to make any of a series of suggested changes intended to reduce their sugar intake, according to a new ComRes poll commissioned by health policy experts The Whitehouse Consultancy on behalf of the National Obesity Forum.

Following recent recommendations for a ‘sugar tax’ from both Public Health England and the Health Select Committee, 31 percent of Britons claimed they would not make any of a series of suggested food and drink substitutions to lower their sugar consumption

Nearly a quarter of Britons (24 percent) claimed they would be willing to switch fizzy drinks for either a diet/sugar-free version or sparkling water, instead of one of series of alternatives. Respondents were asked to pick their preferred substitution from a list including replacing sugar with sweeteners in tea or coffee (15 percent), switching orange juice for fruit (nine percent), or replacing sugar frosted cereal for porridge with berries (12 percent).

Other suggested substitutions included switching a cup cake for a tea cake (eight percent) and replacing a mocha coffee with a sugar-free soya latte (two percent).

The poll was commissioned ahead of a public health campaign called JanUary (formerly National Obesity Awareness Week) led by the National Obesity Forum. Members of the public will be encouraged to take part in a sugars reduction challenge during the week (11-17 January) and record the amount of sugar and calories they save from small lifestyle changes. To help encourage change, real life food visuals have been created highlighting major sources of sugar in the UK diet and the big impact that can be achieved by cutting back on just one sugar source a day over a period of a year.

Professor David Haslam, Chairman of the National Obesity Forum, said:

“We know that reducing the amount of sugar we consume can have long-term health benefits. What we’re asking the public to do this January is to think about the food and drink they’re consuming, and to see the effects if they make what are relatively small changes.

“The issue of obesity needs to be addressed at a national level. But there are also things we can do as individuals. There are plenty of things you can do, and changing your morning coffee or breakfast cereal, as examples, can have a significant impact on the amount of sugar you consume over a period of time.”

The National Obesity Forum is also encouraging members of the public to make healthy New Year’s Resolutions for 2016 during the JanUary campaign, and will be releasing a public health manifesto in addition to running a parliamentary healthy living quiz pitting primary school pupils against MPs.

www.jan-u-ary.co.uk

About the JanUary campaign

The JanUary campaign (formerly National Obesity Awareness Week) will take place between 11 and 17 January 2016. The campaign is led by the National Obesity Forum and supported by organisations including Alpro, Danone, Heart Research UK, Action on Sugar, HENRY and Focus on Food.

 

David A. Leak

Writing about health articles. I love to participate in blog tours! If you are currently organizing a tour for a book that you think I would love, please email me.

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