Council and health officials in Shropshire say that reducing obesity in primary school children is still a “priority” as new figures show the number of reception age children classed as obese is above the national average, writes Dave Morris.

Fresh statistics also show the number of children in year six – aged 10 to 11– who are classed as obese in the Shropshire Council area is 17.6 per cent, just below the national rate of 18.7 per cent.

No figures were available for Telford & Wrekin but they are unlikely to be any better.

Thank goodness officials have given a pledge that tackling childhood obesity remains a priority.

But they face a difficult task.

Food with a high fat or sugar content is still being aimed at children and young people.

Coupled with this is a widespread lack of physical activity which means that many youngsters are becoming overweight.

Getting children off their backsides and away from hours spent playing computer games or sitting in front of the television is not going to be easy.

But should we be worried?

Well, the short answer is yes.

If a child is overweight or obese, it’s more likely they will develop some serious health problems more usually seen in adulthood, such as hardened and blocked arteries, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

They are also twice as likely to be obese when they grow up than children who aren’t overweight, and in adulthood they will be at an increased risk of high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis and certain cancers.

I’ve reported in the past that the cost to the NHS in Shropshire of dealing with weight-related illnesses runs to several million pounds every year.

This has been a strain on health service finances in the past and it certainly will be now as the NHS faces its biggest ever shake-up and a cash squeeze.

Many parents, I fear, are likely to be shirking their responsibility.

If the obesity problem is to be tackled successfully, then parents have an important role to play by encouraging their offspring to eat more healthily and take more exercise.

I have a feeling however than many parents are not concerned and are following the same path as their children.

An influential health study last month revealed that the UK has the highest level of obesity in Europe.

It revealed that the West Midlands was the fattest region in the European Union, with 29 per cent of adults classed as obese. The level was double that of the EU average of 14 per cent.

I have this nagging feeling that Britain is going to remain the “fatman of Europe” for a long time, retaining such a title, in part, thanks to Shropshire.