Shorter, Fatter, Sicker?

The Olympic motto is 'Citius, Altus, Fortius' (faster, higher, stronger). An awful variant for current UK children might be 'shorter, fatter sicker' (https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/jun/19/uk-children-shorter-fatter-and-sicker-amid-poor-diet-and-poverty-report-finds). The Food Foundation has noted that UK 5-year olds are getting shorter. Childhood obesity and the incidence of type 2 diabetes have climbed respectively by 33% and 20%. The Food Foundation maintain these detrimental changes are produced by 'an epidemic of poor diets, food insecurity and poverty'. The organisation notes that aggressive marketing of cheap, ultra-processed foods and diets lacking essential elements have played a role. They think there needs to be a much more effective government food policy. It's self-evident, that the current situation is a 'ticking time bomb'. It's very difficult to reverse health damage that's inflicted in early years. Damaged health and early death will both be costly items to deal with. They wreck both individual life chances and the economy.