An obesity epidemic is sweeping across Cumbria, with more than one third of children now overweight or obese by the age of 11.

That figure is rising year on year, and in some areas it is much worse - prompting fears that young people in the county face a future of serious ill health and reduced life expectancy.

One local health expert said obesity has now overtaken smoking as the biggest health challenge of our time.

Before Christmas, county health chiefs took a controversial stand against the Coca Cola Christmas tour, writing an open letter to the company to say it was not welcome in Cumbria.

Cumbria County Council leader Stewart Young and public health director Colin Cox were met with a backlash, with labels of "Scrooge" and accusations of "nanny state" tactics.
The Coca Cola Christmas promotional truck

But the pair said the latest report shows just why they felt it was necessary, with childhood obesity now a top priority.

The data comes from the annual Child Measurement Programme, which measures the height and weight of children in their first year at primary school and again before they leave for secondary school.

This is then used to calculate their Body Mass Index - to determine if someone is underweight, overweight or obese.

Some have questioned whether this is an accurate way to measure obesity as it does not differentiate between body fat and muscle, and because children can grow at different rates. But even if there is a margin of error, the figures still make stark reading.

They show that, in Cumbria, the number of reception-aged obese or overweight children (age 4-5) rose from 26.6 per cent in 2015/16 to 28.2 per cent. This is above the national average of 22.6 per cent.

By the time children reach year six, that figure has risen to 35.5 per cent - meaning more than one third of 10 and 11-year-olds in Cumbria are now classed as either obese or overweight.

This has risen from 35 per cent in 2015/16, and is slightly above the 34.2 per cent national average.

The parts of the county with the most obese kids are Copeland, where 41.4 per cent of year six children are overweight or obese, and Barrow, where the figure is 38.6 per cent.

For reception children, the highest figures are in Barrow (31.5%), Carlisle (31%), Allerdale (28.1%) and Copeland (27%).

Mr Cox said the childhood measurement programme has now been running since 2008, so they can see the increase in weight within same cohorts of children and use that to predict future gains.

"The figures for what our current reception age might look like in six years time are quite frightening," he said.

Mr Cox is warning that, if nothing is done to reverse the current trend, more than 40 per cent of children across the county will be overweight or obese in year six by 2022/23.

"There is a significant piece of work for us to do here, to try and tackle that," he said.

Professor John Howarth, deputy chief executive of the Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust, is also a public health expert and GP.

He said that if nothing is done, today's children will not be able to expect to live to the same age as their grandparents.

"In my generation, the biggest public health challenge was smoking. The biggest public health challenge for the next few decades is obesity.

"What we might find is that ever-increasing life expectancy begins to go down again because of the impact on cardiovascular disease, cancer and other conditions. That is the key public health challenge," he said.

Mr Young, who also chairs the Cumbria Health and Wellbeing Board, said these concerns prompted the letter about the Coca Cola truck, stressing that it was not about one can of fizzy drink but the wider message the campaign sends out to young people.

"We are focusing on this obesity epidemic. The problem is the real consequences won't be seen until later on when these children grow up. We are heading for some really serious health issues. Type 2 diabetes is closely linked to excessive sugar consumption," he explained.

"A can of Coca Cola has several teaspoons of sugar and a lot of people will have more than one. What are these people doing to their bodies? They are just one brand, but they have drawn attention to themselves.

"I know there's a danger that Colin and I sound like Scrooge but there is a really serious message behind it. This is really approaching epidemic standards and it's a problem in all parts of Cumbria."

The county council is currently planning to host a childhood obesity summit in the new year, to analyse how it can be tackled.

Mr Young said although we may think children in higher income families would be more likely to be over-eat, the parts of Cumbria where it is most prevalent have high rates of deprivation - potentially reflecting poor eating habits of those on low incomes.

"The question is, are we just going to continue measuring it and monitoring it, or are we going to make an attempt at tackling this huge issue? There's a lot of thinking to do about how we go about this.

"Part of it is clearly about education and making people more aware of the choices they are making," he said.

"Different public health campaigns have tried different approaches. If you look at the anti-smoking campaigns, it's been a mixture of carrot and stick. There is a debate to be had."

Mr Young people may be fed up with the so-called nanny state telling then what to do and what not to do.

But he said they have responsibility for public health so can't just sit back, knowing the health implications for the next generation.

He said that despite similar criticism of the state interfering in people's choices, anti-smoking campaigns have had real results.

"There are still some people who smoke, but if you compare it to when I was young - when people smoked in pubs and restaurants without giving it a second thought - it has changed a lot. That's within living memory, so it shows public health campaigns can work," he explained.

"The ban on smoking in public places has helped, but so has the unrelenting education. That's what we need here. It's not just in Cumbria. It's a national issue, but we can draw attention to it."

Mr Cox is currently compiling a wider report for the health and wellbeing board about how to tackle childhood obesity in Cumbria.

His planned summit will also look at what different agencies, such as district councils, can do to help; the role schools have to play and the barriers to healthy eating and active lifestyles.

Obesity - how bad is it in Cumbria?

Percentage of children aged 4-5 who are overweight/obese

*Cumbria 2015/16: 26.6%

*Cumbria 2016/17: 28.2%

*National average: 22.6%

Percentage of children aged 10-11 who are overweight/obese

Cumbria 2015/16: 35%

Cumbria 2016/17: 35.5%

National average: 34.2%