BY 2015, it is estimated that more than 700 million people globally will be obese (World Health Organization 2012), with
children, adolescents and adults increasingly at risk of developing life-threatening diseases such as stroke, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes (Thompson et al 2007). Obesity and its associated metabolic complications of hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia decrease quality of life, and often result in premature death (Dehghan et al 2005). With 20 per cent of children predicted to be obese by 2050 (Department of Health 2012), today's children have a shorter life expectancy than their parents (Swanton and Frost 2007). Table 1 illustrates the numbers of overweight and obese children in the UK.