Fast food outlets face school ban
Fast food outlets are to be banned near schools, under plans being considered by the Government.
Children’s Minister Frances Fitzgerald said she wants to see junk food exclusion zones set up around the country to help battle soaring levels of childhood obesity.
The latest report into child health in Ireland reveals more than a quarter of nine-year-olds are overweight or obese.
As part of the Government’s response, Ms Fitzgerald said she is in talks with Planning Minister Willie Penrose about overhauling planning laws to halt hot food takeaways from opening near schools.
“We are in discussions with the Department of Environment to see if our planning regulations can be changed to ensure that in decisions about the location of fast food outlets, if there is proximity to a school, that that should be a reason to think again about whether or not it should get planning permission,” she said.
Ms Fitzgerald said the proposals were similar to measures introduced in the UK and were being taken seriously.
Councils across England and Wales have imposed so-called “no fry zones” outlawing chip shops and burger bars from opening within 400 yards of any school, youth club or park, in recent years.
Ms Fitzgerald said the Government was considering action on a number of fronts including education, activity and sport, to tackle the “very disturbing” surge in obesity.
“Change in the planning regulations is part of that as well,” she added.
In a stark depiction of the scale of the problem, Health Minister James Reilly said Ireland was facing the prospect of rising numbers of parents outliving their children.
“We do not wish to be the first generation to bury the generation behind us, to live longer than our children,” he said.
“It is not the natural order of things and yet that is what we face, with the rising epidemic of obesity and diabetes in our children, in our young people.”
Mr Reilly said there was “furore” in the food industry because he was considering introducing taxes on sugary drinks and fatty foods and that he had invited manufacturers to discussions about the best way to deal with the issue.
“That’s absolutely under consideration at the moment,” he said.
The latest findings from the ongoing Growing Up in Ireland study revealed that 19% of nine-year-olds were overweight and 7% were obese. Almost a third of girls were overweight or obese compared to just more than a fifth of boys.
Weight problems in children are linked to serious health conditions including asthma, eczema, diabetes, depression and self-esteem issues. In later life, it can also lead to heart disease, stroke and some cancers.
The report found that children’s diets were worse in areas with fewer, or further away from, grocery shops or large supermarkets. Poorer areas tend to have more fast food takeaways and be further away from supermarkets.
The study of 8,500 nine-year-olds showed those from unskilled, working-class homes were significantly more likely to be overweight and obese than those with professional parents.
Lack of exercise and high levels of sedentary activity – like watching television – are also major problems.
Researchers said parents were bad at recognising weight problems, with more than a half of the parents of overweight children surveyed in the study failing to recognise it.
International comparisons showed children were more likely to be overweight in Ireland than in northern European countries, but weren’t as bad as countries like Spain, Italy and Greece.
