Dietary strategies, policy and cardiovascular disease risk reduction in England

Abstract

Diet-related chronic diseases are major public health concerns in England and the associated costs to the National Health Service and society are considerable. Poor diet and other lifestyle factors are estimated to account for about one-third of all deaths from CVD in England. UK dietary recommendations were set by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy and are now set by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition. For cardiovascular health, dietary recommendations are set for nutrients (saturated fat, trans-fat and carbohydrates), foods (fruits, vegetables and oily fish) and salt. The National Diet and Nutrition Survey demonstrates that the majority of the UK population have poor diets. Average intakes of saturated fat and salt are above recommendations while fruit, vegetables, fibre and oily fish are below recommendations. The Department of Health in England is committed to working to improve diet and lifestyle. Current work includes the Public Health Responsibility Deal, under which organisations pledge to increase fruits and vegetables and reduce levels of salt, trans-fat and energy in manufactured foods and menus, the provision of information to help improve food choice through better food labels and provision of information, including a NHS Choices website and the social marketing campaign Change4Life.