Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am grateful for the opportunity to talk to the Members of the House on the question of obesity, specifically child obesity. I understand that the interest in us discussing this important issue today was in part prompted by the publication last summer of the report on childhood obesity from the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly, BIPA. This report, which my Department had input into, sets out some information around the causes and consequences of childhood obesity, as well as looking at the various approaches to tackling the issue with the BIPA jurisdictions.

The report acknowledges our new obesity policy and action plan entitled A Healthy Weight for Ireland, which was approved by the Government last year and launched by the Minister for Health in September 2016. Our obesity policy and the approach being taken to implement it under the broader Healthy Ireland agenda is in line with the key conclusions and recommendations of the BIPA's report.

I will update Senators on some key initiatives and progress under way in implementing the obesity policy, but first I will outline some important facts. A range of health studies and surveys show that overweight and obesity, in both children and adults, is now a serious public health concern in Ireland. The annual Healthy Ireland survey for 2017 shows that almost two thirds of adults are overweight or obese. In addition, 30% of young people aged between 15 and 24 are overweight or obese. Being a healthy weight is no longer the norm. When it comes to children the statistics are just as worrying as studies confirm that one in four children is now overweight or obese.

The childhood obesity surveillance initiative, COSI, is conducted by the national nutrition surveillance centre in UCD on behalf of my Department and the HSE. Its most recent report was published last year. It drew on data from more than 17,000 examinations of primary school children in Ireland between the years 2008 and 2015. Among the key trends to emerge is that the incidence of being overweight and obese in children in first class in Ireland, as for children aged eight years, appears to be stabilising. However, it is also evident that this stabilisation is not observed in children who attend DEIS schools. There is also a marked difference between girls and boys as more young girls tend to be overweight and obese. While any positive direction in the trends is welcome, there is certainly no room for complacency.

Overweight and obesity are not about one's shape or how one looks. There are very real clinical health issues. The consequences of child obesity are significant. Being overweight or obese carries with it an increased risk of several chronic diseases, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers. In addition to the physical health implications, there is often also a significant reduction in quality of life, a reduced opportunity to contribute to society and ability to reach potential, as well as mental health implications for some people.

For children, obesity carries a stigma and may be linked with bullying. We also cannot ignore the financial dimension to this challenge. According to safefood's recently published report, the lifetime costs of childhood overweight and obesity were estimated at €4.6 billion. This is the landscape of obesity that we must deal with and what our obesity policy seeks to address.We know that obesity is a complex problem with nutritional, activity related, psychological, biological and social determinants. Consequently, realistic solutions must be multifaceted and implemented as part of a suite of measures.

The policy acknowledges the importance of an integrated approach across Government to tackle the social determinants of health and well-being, in particular those that contribute to health inequalities in the population. No single sector or agency can solve this issue on its own. Individuals and families need to be supported to make informed choices in healthy eating and being physically active so that they can achieve and maintain a healthy weight. The obesity policy and action plan strives to empower individuals, families and communities to enhance their own skills to improve their health.What we must never forget is that child obesity is largely preventable. Tackling the challenge requires a whole-of-government and a whole-of-society response. This is the approach taken with A Healthy Weight for Ireland, our obesity policy and action plan. The policy covers the period up to 2025 and aims to reverse obesity trends, prevent health complications and reduce the overall burden for individuals, families, the health system and the wider society and economy. The policy acknowledged that every sector of our society has a role in reducing the burden of obesity. It is guided by the Healthy Ireland principles to ensure it is life-course oriented with a focus on children and families and prevention-focused with an emphasis on targeting inequalities. The policy contains concrete indicators to measure the success of its implementation. It set a short-term target of 0.5% per annum for a sustained downward trend in levels of excess weight in children and a reduction in the gap in obesity levels between the highest and lowest socio-economic groups by 10%. The development of the obesity policy involved a consultation with children and young people which was facilitated by the citizen participation unit of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs and recruitment supported through the Irish Primary Principals' Network as well as Comhairle na nÓg. The report of this consultation, Healthy Lifestyles - Have Your Say, was launched with the obesity policy. The implementation of the policy commits to continuing to include the voices and contributions of children and young people.

Obesity is a complex problem with nutritional, activity-related, psychological, biological and social determinants. Consequently, any realistic solutions must be multifaceted and be implemented as part of a suite of measures. No single sector or agency is able to solve this issue on its own. Individuals and families need to be supported to make informed choices in healthy eating and being physically active so they can achieve and maintain a healthy weight. The obesity policy and action plan strives to empower individuals, families and communities to enhance their own skills to improve their health. The obesity policy prescribes Ten Steps Forward that would be taken to prevent overweight and obesity. Under each step, there are a number of actions, some of which have been identified for early implementation.

I am pleased to report that we have already made progress in a few areas that are of particular interest with reference to child obesity. My Department has established an obesity policy implementation oversight group. The first meeting of this cross-sectoral group took place last October. The Minister for Finance announced in budget 2018 the introduction of a sugar tax on sugar-sweetened drinks. The policy objective of this levy is to reduce rates of obesity as well as rates of dental deterioration, particularly in young people. My Department has been engaging with the food industry, including food retailers, on a code of practice to reduce the marketing of products high in fat, sugar and salt with a particular aim to reduce consumption of such products by children and young people. This voluntary code of practice for non-broadcast media advertising and marketing of food and non-alcoholic beverages, including sponsorship and retail product placement, will be launched in the coming weeks. Last November, the Minister for Health and I launched a new child obesity campaign called START, which my Department has developed with Safefood and the HSE. New healthy eating guidelines and a revised food pyramid have been published and supporting resources are being developed and disseminated widely such as in September when we circulated them to all primary and post-primary schools. Work has now commenced on developing healthy eating guidelines for the one to five year old age group. New nutrition standards for schools with an initial focus on school meal programmes funded by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection have also been developed. These nutrition standards were launched by the Ministers for Health, Education and Skills and Employment Affairs and Social Protection last September. The development and implementation of these standards meets commitments in the DEIS action plan as well as the obesity policy.

Other developments in the HSE through a new Healthy Eating, Active Living programme will support work in the education sector as well as with parents, families and communities in supporting a more co-ordinated approach to prevention and early intervention in child obesity. A new clinical lead for obesity, Professor Donal O'Shea, was appointed by the HSE in 2017. A children's communication code, which restricts broadcast advertising of high-fat, sugar and salt foods, is already being implemented and will be reviewed in 2018. There is another dimension to combatting obesity in the short to medium term.

The obesity policy acknowledged the key role of physical activity in the prevention of obesity while the broader benefits of a more active population are set out in the national physical activity plan. Being active is vital for healthy growth and development and has emotional, social and cognitive benefits for children and young people as well as benefits for their physical and mental health and well-being. The national physical activity plan is one of the key developments arising from Healthy Ireland and was approved by Government and launched in early 2016. The implementation of that plan is well under way in collaboration with the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and a range of other stakeholders, including the Department of Education and Skills.

The new Healthy Ireland fund launched by An Taoiseach and the Minister for Health last October will provide funding for a range of projects to support partnership working to implement key policies under the Healthy Ireland banner, including the obesity policy and the physical activity plan. In addition to these actions, what we do in our homes, schools and communities to help build healthy habits for all children and families is vital to childhood obesity prevention efforts. These healthy habits are critical in helping those children who are a healthy weight now stay a healthy weight and those who are overweight or obese achieve a healthier weight as they grow and develop. The key healthy habits are to reduce portion sizes, eat plenty of fruit and vegetables every day, manage treat foods - not every day, replace sugary drinks with water, make being active fun - everyday, reduce screen time and encourage more sleep.

Finally, just earlier this month along with An Taoiseach, we launched a major new Healthy Ireland 2018 campaign to communicate and engage with citizens. It focused on three key themes - healthy eating, physical activity and mental well-being. This campaign will support the cross-sectoral policy implementation work happening at both national and local level and will help and encourage people and families to make those positive changes and choices to improve their health. The campaign through a new online presence at www.gov.ie/healthyirelandas well as social, digital and other media and a series of events throughout the year aims to provide information and connect people with resources and organisations across the country so everyone can get involved in the national effort to create a healthier Ireland.

I thank the departmental staff accompanying me today who have been very helpful since I have been given my brief. I apologise to Senators as I must leave the Chamber in a little while. The Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, will be coming in. My husband is seriously ill in hospital. I just wanted to acknowledge that so people do not think I am walking out before a number of questions are put.