§ Dr. FoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many five-a-day 'co-ordinators are employed in each NHS trust; [127372]
(2) how many five-a-day project co-ordinators have been appointed in each primary care trust. [130365]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonSixty-six primary care trusts (PCTs) are part of a programme being funded by the lottery-funded new opportunities fund to lead five-a-day initiatives in their communities to employ a local co-ordinator. By 15 September, 46 of these 66 co-ordinators had been appointed; the other 20 PCTs expect to appoint by the end of the year. In addition one PCT receives a grant from the new opportunities fund to employ seven full-time and three part-time regional co-ordinators and one part-time supra-regional co-ordinator.
All PCTs lead in their communities on public health issues, including healthy eating projects to increase fruit and vegetable consumption supported by local five-a-day co-ordinators.
Information is not collected centrally on such projects or support staff.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the population(a) in total and (b) under the age of 18, broken down by social class, has been classified as obese in each of the past 10 years. [130057]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonInformation is not available in the form requested. Available information on adult obesity by social class is shown in the table. Figures are from the health survey for England and cover years 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2001.
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Prevalence of adult obesity by survey year and social class, aged 16 and over with a valid height and weight measurement Social class of Head of Household Survey year I % II % IIIN % IIIM % IV % V % Total % Men 1994 9.9 13.7 13.8 15.1 15.0 14.0 13.8 1996 11.8 16.6 16.3 18.9 14.7 18.2 16.4 1998 11.9 16.5 16.5 20.5 16.1 17.9 17.3 2001 14.5 20.8 18.9 23.5 23.4 19.0 21.0 Women 1994 11.5 14.4 15.0 19.7 21.9 22.5 17.3 1996 13.2 15.2 16.0 21.3 22.1 27.1 18.4 1998 15.1 18.4 18.9 24.4 24.9 27.5 21.2 2001 14.1 19.7 21.5 27.0 30.5 28.5 23.5 Trend information on children's obesity by social class is not available. Young people aged 16–18 are classified as adults. The following analyses therefore cover children under age 16. Social class comparisons of the percentage of children in BMI quintiles were published in the Health Survey for England—The Health of Young People 95–97 table 3.15, a copy of which is available in the Library. Overall trends show that obesity in children is rising. Although there is no generally accepted consensus on the definition of obesity in childhood, all recent studies, no matter which definition is used, have shown that the prevalence of obesity is increasing in children in England.
Health survery of England: obesity prevalence trends among English children aged 6–15 1996 2001 Percentage obese1 12.1 15.6 1 Equal to or greater than 95 BMI centile (Cole TJ, Freeman JV, and Preece MA. Body mass index reference curves for the UK. 1990. Arch. Dis. Child. 1995; 73: 25–29).
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the percentage of food advertising that is broadcast during children's television viewing times on(a) terrestrial television and (b) cable and satellite children's television channels; and what assessment he has made of the percentage of food advertising broadcast during children's television viewing times on (i) terrestrial and (ii) cable and satellite children's television channels that is promoting high calorie, low nutrient foods. [130083]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Food Standards Agency have funded an independent expert review of the evidence regarding the effect of promotional activity on children's eating behaviour, which covers television advertising and will identify research papers on a range of relevant topics.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take powers to restrict the use of free toys and well-known children's film and television characters in the promotion of fast food to children. [130084]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Food Standards Agency is currently considering the issue of the promotion of food to children. They have funded an independent expert review of the evidence regarding the effect of promotional activity on children's eating behaviour, which will be published this autumn.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what booklets the Food Standards Agency published on healthy eating in(a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02 and (c) 2002–03. [130093]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonIn 2000–01, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) re-branded booklets it inherited from the Health Education Authority and the Department on healthy eating.
In 2001–02, the FSA published the following life stage leaflets on healthy eating entitled: "While you are pregnant"; "Thinking of having a baby"; "Breastfeeding"; "Feeding your baby"; "Feeding your toddler"; "Feeding your growing child"; "Eating for later in life"; and "Men an d food".
1282WIn 2002–03, the FSA published a series of leaflets: "Healthy Eating Sugars"; "Healthy Eating Salt"; "Healthy Eating Fats"; and "Labelling claims".
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what foods the chemical acrylamide is present in; and what research has been done into the effects of acrylamide on health. [130094]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonI am advised by the Food Standards Agency that acrylamide has been found to occur in a wide range of home-cooked and processed foods. These include chips, crisps, bread and breakfast cereals. It has not been found in uncooked or boiled foods, and appears to be formed during cooking by methods such as frying, roasting and baking, which involve higher temperatures.
Acrylamide has been shown to cause various types of cancer in laboratory animals. It is considered to have the potential to cause cancer in humans. Research into the effects of acrylamide on health is being conducted nationally and internationally.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the additives permitted in(a) conventional food and (b) organic food. [130100]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonA list of all European Union permitted food additives has been created by the Food Standards Agency. This list can be accessed by using the following link to the Food Standards Agency website: http://www.food.gov.uk/safereating/additivesbranch/enumberlist
Food additives in organic foods are limited to those listed in Section A of Annex VI of Regulation (EEQ2092/91, which governs organic production in the EU. A list of these can be found on page 66 of the UKROFS standards at http://www.defra.qov.uk/farm/orqanic/ukrofs/standard.pdf.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to change the number of additives allowed in food. [130101]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonI am advised by the Food Standards Agency that food additives legislation is harmonised throughout the European Union. All additives permitted in food have been rigorously assessed for safety by the independent scientific committees that advise the European Commission and the UK Government on food safety issues. Any changes to the number of additives allowed in food would be on the basis of advice from these expert committees.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government has to try and reverse the decline in minerals in food. [130103]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe evidence on whether there has been a decline in the mineral content of foods generally is unclear. This is due to differences over time in study methodologies and because mineral levels naturally occurring in foods can vary widely due to a range of factors.
The overall balance of the diet is more important than the nutrient content of individual foods. It is for this reason that Government activity has concentrated on promoting the uptake of a healthy balanced diet.
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§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government have to make independent testing of food additives an automatic requirement. [130117]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonSafety data on additives, whether provided by manufacturers or from independent sources, are thoroughly assessed by the independent expert committees that advise the Government or the European Commission before authorisation is granted. Data that are submitted for evaluation by committees must satisfy good laboratory practice requirements and also comply with any guidelines laid down by the expert committee.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research the Government has undertaken into the health consequences that might occur when several food additives are combined in a single product. [130118]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Food Standards Agency (FSA) is currently funding a research project entitled "Development of methods for the assessment of the health effects from mixtures of food additives". This study is investigating four additives, chosen because they have a similar mode of action and is due to be completed in 2005. The FSA has also recently established a new research programme on mixtures of chemicals. The main focus is on residues of pesticides and veterinary medicines, but the results will provide more general information on possible effects of mixtures of chemicals in food including additives.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to remove a star from trusts where the percentage of obese people increases. [130159]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Commission for Health Improvement is the independent regulator of national health service performance and is responsible for developing indicators and publishing NHS performance ratings. Ministers will continue to agree key targets and the priority areas to be covered in the ratings, but are not responsible for their calculation.
The prevention and management of obesity is at the heart of many of the Government's priority areas, as set out in the NHS Plan, the cross-cutting review on health inequalities, national service frameworks and the priorities and planning framework.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the European Commission regarding the proposal to ban health claims made about food products. [130174]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonI am advised by the Food Standards Agency that the European Commission has adopted a proposal that seeks to better regulate health claims on foods, allowing them only when evidence to substantiate the claim has been accepted by the European Food Safety Authority. This proposal is currently under negotiation in Brussels.
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§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will respond to the recent proposals of the Obesity Awareness and Solutions Trust in relation to Toast House. [130393]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe Department is aware of the work of the obesity awareness and solutions trust (TOAST).
The Department provided funding for TOAST through a Section 64 grant in 2002. The funding finished in March 2003. TOAST have updated the Department on their proposals in relation to TOAST house, which may complement the Department's work to tackle overweight and obesity.
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ban the food additives(a) tartrazine, (b) quinoline yellow, (c) sunset yellow FCF, (d) cochineal, (e) carmoisine, (f) amaranth, (g) poncean 4R, (h) erythrosine, (i) indigo carmine, (j) caramel, (k) black PN, (l) annatto, (m) benzoic acid, (n) sodium benzoate, (o) sulphur dioxide, (p) sodium nitrate, (g) sodium nitrate, (r) butylated hydroxyanisole and (s) butylated hydroxytoluene; and if he will undertake further research to identify additives that may exacerbate hyperactivity in children. [130401]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonI am advised by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) that there are no plans to ban these additives. Legislation on food additives is harmonised throughout the European Union and all additives permitted for use in food, including those listed, have been rigorously assessed for safety by the independent scientific committees that advise the European Commission and the United Kingdom Government. Any ban on the use of these additives would be on the basis of advice from these expert committees.
In May this year the FSA put out a research call inviting new proposals to examine whether there are any links between certain food additives and behaviour in children. Proposals have now been received and are currently being appraised by an independent panel of experts.