Too much food can kill you.

Childhood obesity is a killer.  Thirty percent of boys and forty percent of girls will be obese by 2020 according to the British Medical Association. 

What’s more teenagers who are obese are more likely to die by the age of 50, according to the National Obesity Forum. 

Campaigners for better awareness say there is no magic bullet to turn our young generation into healthy living adults.

Take a look at these killer facts.

Food Fact 1

1 chocolate bar (45g), 1 packet of crisps (35g) and 1 can of fizzy drink (330ml) every school day

= 559 extra kilocalories (kcal) a day

= 80 minutes of football every school day for a teenager or run a marathon every other school day. 

Over the course of a year the additional cost of these snacks would cost around £325, the same price as a 12 month mobile phone contract.

Food Fact 2

Side order of fried chips with half a sachet of salt instead of new potatoes

= 15 packs of butter (250g) and 100 sachets of salt over school year.

Food Fact 3

A 4g sachet of salt added to portion of chips at lunchtime will provide 67% of the recommended daily intake of salt for 11-16 year olds and 80% for 7-10 year olds.  This doesn’t include salt included in processed foods like crisps, cooking dinner or added at the dinner table.

Food Fact 4

The average child fails to consume less than half of the recommended 5 portions of fruit or vegetables every day.

Food Fact 5

A third of 12 year olds and half of 15 year olds were found to have some dental decay commonly associated with high levels of sugar in the diet such as fizzy drinks which are eaten in between meals.

This information was compiled from The School Food Trust and other sources.