Lifestyle Celebrity health


warned he was at risk of developing type 2 diabetes during the next 10 years unless he did something about it. “That’s a surprise and a bit of a wake-up call,”


Taking Britain’s Fat Fight to the streets of Newcastle


gently resolve,” he said. While making the series, Fearnley-Whittingstall


explored a number of things he believes have contributed to the level of obesity among the UK public, one of which is the tactics big food manufacturers use to tempt us to buy more foods high in fat and sugar. In one scene, he investigated the amount of sugar in breakfast cereals, and shocked a group of parents when they realised how much sugar their children were eating first thing in the morning.


Weight shock But there was also a surprise in store for Fearnley-Whittingstall. While making Britain’s Fat Fight he visited a GP to have his height, weight and waist circumference measured. Weighing 12st 8lb, his body mass index (BMI) was calculated to be 26.2, while his waist measured 36in (93cm). Since a healthy BMI is between 18.5 - 24.9, this


meant that Fearnley-Whittingstall’s BMI was in the overweight range. The doctor also told Fearnley-Whittingstall that his waist measurement was ‘worrying’, and the chef was


he said on finding out the news. “I’ve been quite chubby – got the chunky tummy, a lot of double chins flying around in pictures from the mid to late 1990s. Now I’m in my 50s and I’m told I’m going in the wrong direction – that is a bit alarming.” Fearnley-Whittingstall admitted that not only


had his weight been up and down over the years but that he also often eats chocolate when he’s under pressure. His weaknesses, he claims are cheese and biscuits, chocolate – and puddings generally – and wine with his dinner. “I cook a lot, I eat a lot of veg but I do have a


sweet tooth,” he said. “I drink cider, wine almost every day and probably more than a glass. Sometimes more than two glasses.” In fact while making Britain’s Fat Fight


Fearnley-Whittingstall worked out that, in terms of calories, his weekly wine intake was roughly equivalent to 22 cans of Coke.


Fasting for health Married with four children, Fearnley-Whittingstall took the news about his health on board and has since lost 5kg (11lb) in weight, which puts him firmly back in the healthy BMI range. However it’s not the first time he’s had a fight


with flab: five years ago he claimed to have lost more than half a stone in just six days by going on the 5:2 diet (also known as the Fast Diet), an intermittent fasting plan where you eat normally for five days and reduce your calories drastically for two days Intermittent fasting diets became popular in


2012 when doctor and journalist Michael Mosley introduced the idea in an episode of the BBC's Horizon. For more details, visit thefastdiet.co.uk.


What is prediabetes?


The term prediabetes has been talked about a lot recently, but what does it mean exactly? According to Simon O’Neill, Director of Healthcare and Professional


Liaison at Diabetes UK, terms such as prediabetes and borderline diabetes are often mentioned by doctors, but they don’t mean you have type 2 diabetes or even that you’ll definitely develop it. “But you do need to act now if you want to try and avoid it,” he says. “These terms can all be used to explain that your blood glucose


levels are higher than normal, but not high enough for you to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. They are largely based on an individual measurement of your blood glucose levels, regardless of any other factors. Having high blood glucose levels can increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes and other health complications, although this is not inevitable.” O’Neill adds that between 5 - 10 per cent of people with


prediabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes each year. If you think you may be at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, find out more about it on page 13.


All About health 7


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