Tubby adults over 40 ‘should be ordered to have health checks for diabetes and attend slimming classes’, health watchdog warns
A BLITZ on obesity could see everyone over 40 in England and Wales have an NHS check for diabetes.
Health watchdog Nice also wants adults sent to free slimming classes.
It suggests everyone over 40 has an NHS check for the condition — with as many as two million being sent to free weight-loss classes.
The checks could take place at work, jobcentres, shops, libraries and churches, as well as GPs’ surgeries and pharmacies.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence wants five million adults at increased risk of diabetes to be considered for “intensive life-style change programmes”.
It would involve classes, such as WeightWatchers, fitness sessions and lifestyle coaching — including diet advice such as replacing snacks like Bombay mix and crisps with fruit and unsalted nuts.
However, Nice says GPs should urgently prioritise the 1.7million people most likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
But medical leaders opposed the blanket checks in England and Wales — claiming they would be a waste of cash.
Diabetes affects four million Brits and costs the health service £10billion annually.
About 90 per cent of cases are type 2, which is linked to obesity.
Nice wants everyone over 40 assessed — unless pregnant.
Professor Mark Baker, director of the centre for guidelines at Nice, said: “We know that helping someone to make simple changes to their diet and exercise levels can significantly reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
“This approach is a cost-effective way of managing this illness.”
Support crucial to foil type 2
TYPE 2 diabetes raises the chances of heart, kidney and eye disease, writes Dr Emily Burns, of Diabetes UK.
Diabetes can also trigger nerve damage and depression, and is the most common reason for lower limb amputations.
We know that obesity is the greatest single risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
While ethnicity and other factors can play a role, many cases of type 2 diabetes are preventable.
That is why widespread NHS support for those at high risk is so crucial.
With right advice and support, those people can significantly reduce the risk by maintaining a healthy weight, eating well and staying active.
Officials said widespread uptake would still save the NHS cash in the long run.
Coaching will involve at least eight sessions, focusing on fitness, weight-loss and healthy diet.
Tam Fry, of the National Obesity Forum, said: “We are facing the most ginormous problem.
“Everyone over-40 should be checked for their diabetes risk.
“It is threatening to bankrupt the NHS so we urgently have to do something about it.
“Referring high-risk patients to slimming classes and getting them to improve their diet is crucial. It will cost upfront but it is an investment in the future.”
But Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “GPs and our teams — who manage the vast majority of diabetes care in the community — do our best to encourage patients to make life-style changes that can positively impact on their health.
“However, we would advise caution in methods for targeting patients — blanket checks for all over 40s, has the potential to subject healthy people to unnecessary tests.”
