Government and employers should have a bigger role in improving the health of the nation, a recent s...
Government and employers should have a bigger role in improving the health of the nation, a recent study from BUPA has found.
The report, Whose health is it anyway?, showed that 85% of respondents believe education is the key to encouraging a healthy lifestyle among the UK population and that the government should introduce mandatory health and nutrition education for primary school children as part of the national curriculum.
Eight out of 10 respondents believe the government needs to play a greater part in the regulation of food manufacturers, and 67% call for the introduction of tax breaks for employers to incentivise them to offer health benefits to employees.
When asked about the role of employers in encouraging a healthy population, 73% of respondents believe employers should offer free health assessments for all staff, while 66% think stress counselling should be at the top of employers' agendas. A further 62% think employers should also offer free health and nutrition advice.
Discussing the findings, Dr Andrew Vallance-Owen, group medical director at BUPA, said: "Although individuals are ultimately responsible for health, there is also an appetite for the government, and to a certain extent employers, to provide greater support and advice to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle."
