A report published by the Northern Health Science Alliance’s Nutrition North network paints a stark picture of the state of nutrition in the North of England and calls for urgent support and investment to address this reversible trend.
The analysis shows that people in the North generally have a lower intake of nutrients such as calcium, fibre, vegetables, and healthy fatty acids than the national average, and spend less on household food per week than the rest of England. Northern regions also have higher levels of adult obesity, hypertension, diabetes and greater mortality rates from preventable cancer, and preventable cardiovascular and liver diseases.
The authors point to a number of influencing factors, including higher food insecurity, lack of access to healthy foods and the high numbers of fast-food outlets located in the North.
They are calling for policymakers to adopt a range of targeted recommendations to address this issue. These include strategies to improve access to healthy food in the North and prevent food insecurity, the establishment of a skilled nutritionist workforce in the North, improved collection of regional-level diet data and measures to ensure families have enough income to meet their basic needs.
View: https://www.healthequitynorth.co.uk/app/uploads/NUTRITION-NORTH-REPORT-6-08-07-2025.pdf
