Third of Swiss are overweight

Nearly a third of Swiss are overweight, and pay little attention to their diet, according to the Federal Health Office. Seven per cent were found to be obese.

The findings, published on Monday, come from a survey carried out in June aimed at establishing current eating habits of the population.

It showed that up to 30 per cent of Swiss people over the age of 15 are lacking a healthy diet. A fifth said they do not eat salad and vegetables on a daily basis, while 30 per cent admitted to not consuming fruit every day.

More men were found to be overweight than are women, although roughly equivalent numbers of both sexes were classified as obese. The worst affected age group was between 50 and 64.

The study also found that over four per cent of the population is underweight. Women are worst affected: 6.8 per cent are below their ideal body weight compared to only 1.6 per cent of men.

The Federal Health Office concluded that diets were worst among people with low levels of education. From a geographical perspective, it said the French speaking Swiss have a less balanced diet than their counterparts in the rest of the country.

Excessive alcohol consumption was found to be less of a problem with 3.8 per cent of the population reporting that they regularly drink alcohol twice a day.

Those found to be overweight (28 per cent) had a body mass index (BMI) of between 25 and 29,9. The BMI is an internationally recognised measurement based on the relationship between the height and body weight.

Those with a BMI above 30 are classed as obese.

swissinfo with agencies