All Ireland Obesity Conference Weighs The Options

The 'All Island Conference on Obesity - Obesity: Weighing up the evidence' was jointly opened by Northern Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey and the Irish Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Mary Wallace.

In his opening remarks the Northern Health Minister Michael McGimpsey said: "There is no doubt that the obesity time bomb in Northern Ireland is ticking louder than ever. Our level of obesity, especially amongst our children is incredibly worrying. If we are to tackle this challenge, I strongly believe that public health must be at the centre of what we do.

"The new dedicated Agency for Public Health and Social Well-being will have a central role in driving forward the public health agenda and our cross departmental obesity strategy Fit Futures. We will also continue to work closely across jurisdictions, to share experience and expertise in order to make the best possible inroads into this shared problem."

The Minister continued, "Government can not however tackle obesity on its own. I believe that we can certainly encourage and promote healthy eating and physical activity but as a society, we must take more individual responsibility for our own health outcomes."