BISHOP'S STORTFORD: Area fairs well on new 'fat map'

12:13pm Thursday 28th August 2008

A NEW 'fat map' of the UK shows relatively low levels of obesity in the district.

A study carried out by Dr Foster Research shows that only 6.4 per cent of patients registered with GPs in the East and North Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust area are obese.

That ranks the district in the lowest category for the problem, and some way behind hotspots including Kent (9.4 per cent), Barking and Dagenham (9.3 per cent), and Bexley (9.1 per cent).

The Shetland Isles has the highest proportion, with 15.5 per cent of patients obese, closely followed by many parts of Wales and the north east.

The data, from GP practices across the UK, shows that more than one in ten patients registered with GPs in some parts of the country is obese.

The research is based on a register of patients aged 16 and over with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or over in the previous 15 months.

Alex Young, senior project manager at Dr Foster Research, said: "There’s a certain amount of social stigma attached to being obese, it may be that these obese people are not going to see their GP.

"However we need to bear in mind that some PCTs are better at recording the data than others, and this could affect the results."

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