12th Jan 2009 - 00:00
Abstract
Ex-England and Arsenal footballer Ian Wright has blamed TV, games consoles and lack of P.E. in schools for the worrying prediction that obese children may die much sooner than they should.
Wright was speaking to The Sun newspaper and explained that because of obesity-related diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, kids will die before their parents at the current rate. In a new book 'Fitter Families', Wright shows how simply having a kickabout in the park or flying a kite in the back garden can contribute to improved health. "Our message is that it has to be SAS – short, achievable and sustainable. It's about starting easy and building up because it's going to take time," says Wright. "It was different when I was younger. Now everyone's overweight. People used to spend more time outside…You've got so much cheap food now and a lot of it is not good stuff. You've got to add in video games, the lack of playing fields and fitness training in schools." He added: "It's simple and we can all do it. But we can't afford to put it off – we have to do it now."