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Fatwick City?

September 7th, 2006 · Posted by Skuds in Life · 1 Comment · Life

Its official! Crawley’s inhabitants are the fattest in Sussex.

I think I can vouch for that… Must be something in the water because I have put on 5 or 6 stone since moving here from London, although that could be down to marital contentment and middle-age spread.

In the Crawley Observer this story takes up most of a page. The bottom quarter of the page is an advert with the headline “1 out of 3 relationships goes pearshaped. Has yours?”. Well it looks like relationships are not the only thing going pearshaped around these parts.

The Observer treats the story quite flippantly with references to ‘lardy locals’ and ‘top of the tubs’, and I’m no better really, but this is a serious issue and I do not think it is a coincidence that the parts of Sussex with most areas that score badly on the various indices of deprivation (Crawley and Hastings) are those which show the highest body mass index figures. There is a direct link between poverty and obesity and bad diet is on that line.

Fortunately there are various initiatives, with Sure Start prominent among them, to encourage more healthy eating and to educate young children and parents about nutrition, and Crawley is, ironically, very well-provided for with sports facilities. Lets be patient though – all these initiatives are about long-term solutions with no quick fixes or immediate results likely.

If it all works out with this local job I am after I think I will consider cycling or walking to work, despite living in one of the hilliest parts of town.

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One Comment so far ↓

  • Richard

    “Gatwick City” – that’s my word I dreamt up, Skuds !

    “Fatwick City” – do you want a fight outside, or here 🙂