He said: "The other factors that play an increasingly important role are simply lack of exercise and eating too much. Genes only play a small part. Tackling weight problems is still in your own hands."
Dr David Haslam, the clinical director of the National Obesity Forum said "There is now research to suggest that at every stage in life there are factors which influence obesity. At the moment every stage of the cycle is wrong and needs looking at. Until that happens it is like a vicious circle where a mother is imprinting her baby with a faulty metabolism which is passed on in the genes and just keeps on being passed on."
It would certainly do a world of good if nutrition issues are addressed at the school level itself, so that children can form healthy dietary habits.
