Stating the *** obvious

The government's new obesity call to action has been (almost) universally reviled. It's quite an achievement to elicit the scorn of the media (Daily Mail to New Statesman), experts from the medical profession (as told to the BMJ) and Jamie Oliver. Possibly the most arresting headlines were derived from the elegant summary by Professor Terence Stephenson, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, who suggested that the government's proposed calorie cut was "equivalent to 16 dry roasted peanuts, containing six calories each." Behind the infamous call to action is a change in the advice from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) on energy requirements, cutting advised maximum intake for women to 2079 and for men 2605 calories per day. Alongside the obesity strategy, Change4life is given a makeover, with an extended scope (including alcohol harm and physical activity).
An article in the Journal of Public Health Policy offers some insight into what the UK public thinks causes obesity, while a piece in the European Journal of Public Health casts a sceptical eye over partnerships between the food industry and public health.