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Folk get chance to shape up
HUNDREDS of residents in Barnsley - dubbed the fattest town in England - are shaping up by signing up for free exercise sessions on the NHS.
In the past four months, as many as 300 patients have been referred by local GPs and practice nurses to the town's Metrodome leisure complex, as part of a plan to improve their health and fitness.
The joint initiative between the leisure complex and NHS Barnsley aims to improve the town's rating as one of the worst places in the UK for its obesity levels.
Research by medical data analysts Dr Foster Intelligence last year showed Barnsley was the fattest place in England, where 10.8 per cent of the population was obese.
The 'fat map' of Britain highlighted old industrial areas in Britain generally have higher levels of obesity than more affluent areas in the south.
Obesity raises the risk of life threatening diseases such as cancer, heart disease and type two diabetes - making it a key priority for health chiefs to tackle. Overweight and obese Barnsley patients are now signing up for 12 week exercise sessions, which start with an assessment of a person's weight, blood pressure, BMI and lung capacity before a tailored programme is worked out just for them.
People attend twice a week and can do swimming lessons, exercise classes and use the gym.
Exercise Referral Co-ordinator at Barnsley Premier Leisure, which runs Metrodome, Mark Goodhead said: "The referral service is working really well."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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