US embassy cable - 05MADRID1639

UNCLAS MADRID 001639 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR OES/IHA AND EUR/WE; HHS FOR NIH AND 
OS/OGHA/BUDASHEWITZ 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SOCI, SP, Other 
SUBJECT: MORE WORRYING OBESITY STATISTICS 
 
REF: MADRID 551 
 
1. Reftel outlined Spain's Nutrition and Obesity Prevention 
Strategy (NAOS), which was launched in February with much 
fanfare by Health Minister Elena Salgado (responding to what 
she claimed was the nation's obesity "pandemic").  Minister 
Salgado went back on the anti-fat hustings April 26, when she 
announced that her Ministry's just-released "National Health 
Survey" had demonstrated that Spain's obesity problem remains 
grave and was getting worse.  Below are some of the numbers 
flung out by the Minister to help get the NAOS up and 
running.  The survey was conducted between April 2003 and 
March 2004 and all figures below (unless otherwise noted) are 
pegged to calendar year 2003. 
 
--  14 percent of Spanish adults are obese and 37 percent are 
overweight.  The combined obese/overweight total is six 
percentage points higher than the 2001 total.  Only seven 
percent of Spanish adults were considered obese in 1987, the 
first year in which the National Health Survey was conducted. 
 
--  Nine percent of Spanish children between two and 17 are 
obese and 18 percent are overweight. 
 
--  55 percent of Spanish adults say they do not exercise at 
any time.  This figure is five percentage points higher than 
in 2001. 
 
--  90 percent of Spanish adults eat dairy products on a 
daily basis (up from 82 percent in 2001). 
 
--  72 percent of Spanish adults eat meat three or more times 
a week (up from 62 percent in 2001). 
 
--  46 percent of Spanish adults eat fish three or more times 
a week (down from 48 percent in 2001). 
 
--  34 percent of Spanish adults and 45 percent of Spanish 
children eat "sweets" on a daily basis. 
 
--  69 percent of Spanish adults say they eat fresh fruit 
every day and 41 percent claim to eat both fresh fruit and 
fresh vegetables on a daily basis. 
 
--  57 percent of Spanish adults say they only eat fresh 
vegetables once or twice a week. 
 
--  Six percent of Spanish youths between one and 24 do not 
eat or drink anything for breakfast.  19 percent say they 
only have something to drink for breakfast. 
 
--  89 percent of Spanish children between one and 15 watch 
television on a daily basis.  14 percent of these say they 
watch TV for less than one hour a day; 45 percent between one 
and two hours a day; 21 percent between two and three hours a 
day; and, nine percent over three hours a day. 
 
2.  COMMENT:  Salgado used the above figures to make a 
familiar argument -- Spaniards need to adopt a more healthy 
diet and drag themselves away from the TV and to the gym. 
Spain has developed rapidly in the last two decades and with 
that development has come many of the ills that plague other 
"rich" developed societies.  The Spanish government point 
person on NAOS, Food Safety Agency Director Doctor Maria P. 
Neira Gonzales believes Spain could learn from USG efforts to 
"fight fat" and is thus, with the assistance of Embassy 
Madrid, planning future travel to Washington to meet with 
officials from HHS and its affiliated agencies.  Madrid 
Emboffs are already coordinating with HHS/OS/OGHA. 
MANZANARES