Healthy eating and exercise

"Healthy nutrition and exercise" is a national action plan of the German Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection and the Federal Ministry of Health for the prevention of malnutrition, lack of exercise, obesity and related diseases, started in 2007.

Action required by the federal government

In Germany, 37 million adults and 2 million children are overweight or obese . About one million adults and half a million children and adolescents are pathologically overweight (morbid obesity). The cost of nutrition-related diseases ( cardiovascular disease , chronic back pain , etc.) is estimated at 70 billion euros annually. Added to this are the non-quantifiable costs due to a lack of exercise . On the basis of these figures, the Federal Ministry of Health saw itself compelled to launch a campaign in 2007 to raise awareness of the consequences of a sedentary lifestyle and poor diet.

Disease prevention through more exercise

Health organizations repeatedly encourage preventive health care through more exercise and sport. Since the “Step by Step - Exercise” campaign launched in 2012 by the German Cancer Aid Foundation , the great importance of regular exercise for disease prevention has been particularly emphasized. Citizens are offered information material free of charge on how “more exercise” can be easily integrated into everyday life: walk more often, use bicycles more often and climb stairs instead of taking the elevator. These are examples of short daily exercise sessions that also help improve overall physical fitness.

Action plan

Role model function of the public sector: Health as a factor for innovation and competitiveness for industry and Germany as a business location
Education and information about nutrition, exercise and health: Prevention in the family, kindergarten, school, vocational training, company, university; balanced food in canteens and exercise offers in companies; Improvement of product information and labeling of food
Movement in everyday life: Integrate more sport and exercise into everyday life by expanding attractive opportunities for exercise in the living environment, at work, in kindergartens and schools or in retirement homes (playgrounds, footpaths and bike paths, shopping opportunities close to home) and for everyone accessible offers in school, company and popular sports
Quality improvement in catering outside the home: 26% of the population eat out at least once a day. Communal catering in canteens, schools and kindergartens, but also the offers in restaurants and snack bars, should be improved in terms of nutrition
Impetus for research

criticism

The action is criticized by consumer associations and health organizations: The goals are not formulated in a measurable way. The labeling of food must be required by law (such as in England the colored "traffic lights green yellow red", red for sugar and fat). Instead of using the term “sugar”, the industry continues to disguise the term “carbohydrates”. The organization “Foodwatch” demands the representation of two sugar cubes pyramids, one for the sugar content of the food and one for daily needs as a graphic comparison. The whole thing is once again meaningless political propaganda. The clinic manager and author Edmund Fröhlich made a similar statement in June 2008 in the environmental journal , in which he classified the key issues paper as inadequate. The actually already sick obese patients are not included in the plan. Fröhlich described the action plan as a further unsuitable attempt “to get one of the greatest economic challenges under control.” There were also critical voices at an expert hearing on June 6, 2007 in the Bundestag Committee on Agriculture and Food. Is required z. B. regular compulsory examinations at school, advertising bans during children's TV programs and mandatory "health education" in kindergarten and elementary school.

literature

Health survey 1998 in: The health system 12/1999 (.PDF)

IASO: Frequency of obesity by European countries ( Memento from September 29, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF file; 93 kB)

Happy / Sinister: Generation Chips. Computers and fast food - what drives our children to obesity.

Web links

Individual evidence

^ Federal Health Survey 1998.

↑ https://www.krebshilfe.de/fileadmin/Downloads/PDFs/Praeventionsratgeber/403_0124.pdf , accessed on March 30, 2019

^ Cancer Aid President Fritz Pleitgen in his project description on December 27, 2011.

↑ Edmund Fröhlich: Statement on the "National Action Plan Malnutrition, Lack of Exercise, Obesity" ( Memento from February 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive )

↑ bundestag.de ( Memento of the original dated December 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2

[1] Federal Health Survey 1998.

[2] ttps://www.krebshilfe.de/fileadmin/Downloads/PDFs/Praeventionsratgeber/403_0124.pdf , accessed on March 30, 2019

[3] Cancer Aid President Fritz Pleitgen in his project description on December 27, 2011.

[4] Edmund Fröhlich: Statement on the "National Action Plan Malnutrition, Lack of Exercise, Obesity" ( Memento from February 22, 2014 in the Internet Archive )