Bristol researchers contribute to House of Lords report on obesity and diet

A House of Lords report on connections between diet and obesity, and their effects on ill-health (including cancer) is formally being launched today. Researchers from Bristol’s Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme (ICEP), the MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit (IEU) and the Bristol Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) submitted data for the report.

The report (published last month) focuses on the role ultra-processed foods, and foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar play in healthy diet and tackling obesity. Professor Richard Martin, lead principal investigator of ICEP and co-lead of the BRC’s diet and physical activity theme, is today attending the launch as one of the invited guests.

Obesity has been linked to at least 13 types of cancers. According to the report, researchers have predicted obesity will overtake smoking as the main preventable cause of cancer in women by 2043.

The report also notes that two-thirds of UK adults are overweight and just under a third are living with obesity, which costs the NHS billions each year. It sets out key actions, as part of its proposed strategy to tackle the obesity crisis. Some of these actions include:

• Making large food businesses report on the healthiness of their sales
• Introducing a salt and sugar reformulation tax
• Commissioning further research into the links between ultra-processed foods and adverse health outcomes and reviewing dietary guidelines to reflect any new evidence

Professor Martin welcomes the report from the House of Lords. He says:

“This is a wide-ranging report, and it quite rightly notes the strong links between diet, obesity and cancer. Population health researchers at the University of Bristol have contributed important findings to the evidence base on obesity and cancer that the report draws on.

“Our Cancer Research UK-funded work in ICEP has a strong commitment to improving knowledge of the links between obesity and cancer, particularly to understand the biological mechanisms and who is at high risk, so that we can develop lifestyle and pharmacological interventions that are effective and targeted at people who would most benefit from them.”

The full report can be found here. Bristol population health contributions reflect research from the MRC IEU, ICEP and the Bristol BRC.