Tackling Obesities: Future Choices is an independent scientific enquiry into the biological, behavioural, social, environmental and economic causes of obesity. It describes obesity as the ‘climate change of public health’, comparable in both complexity and scale. Projections show that if current trends continue over half the UK adult population could be obese by 2050, with substantial personal, social, health and economic implications.

The report identifies the top five policy areas that will have the greatest impact on reducing obesity levels as:

• increasing walkability and cyclability of the built environment
• targeting health interventions for those at increased risk
• controlling the availability of and exposure to obesogenic foods and drinks
• increasing the responsibility of organisations for the health of their employees
• early life interventions at birth or in infancy.

Research findings suggest that:

• good access to leisure centres helps reduce the risks of obesity
• there is a link between levels of participation in physical activity and the availability of local recreational sports facilities
• access to these facilities is influenced by where people live, with fewer opportunities for those in the most deprived neighbourhoods.

The report identifies a range of opportunities in the built environment to increase physical activity and help tackle obesity. They include:

• provision of facilities for sport and formal exercise, supplemented by actions to increase usage, particularly among disadvantaged groups
• designing opportunities for health and physical activity into architecture and urban design
• promoting ‘active transport’, such as walking and cycling, as part of broader environmental changes that encourage physical activity.

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