By Helen Rainbow, Senior Health Researcher
From the outset 2009 looks like it is going to be a difficult year. Within the first week the papers are full of news of high street decline and talk of printing money. The impact of the recession is becoming clear to everyone, and is having a major effect on behaviour. Financial frugality is increasing with people beginning to seriously consider what they spend – it was revealed this week that searches for flights were down 42 per cent on last year.
In the past this frugality may have had a positive effect in some areas, such as healthier eating. As costs rise one way of saving money is buying and preparing cheaper food, a process which tends to lead to a healthier diet. However as Jamie Oliver pointed out to the Health Select Committee before Christmas, for many people this is no longer an option, as they lack the knowledge to be able to cook food from scratch.
The Government is trying to do something about this. This week it has launched a new campaign, Change4Life, which will aim to encourage healthier eating through measures including a high profile advertising campaign. However the evidence for the effectiveness for such campaigns is limited, and it is doubtful that it will be able to penetrate the prevailing culture that it at the heart of many people’s decisions around food.
As such the impacts of the recession on health are likely to be largely negative, particularly as the uncertainty caused by rising unemployment is likely to lead to rising levels of mental ill health. There are some benefits: if you have the cash and want to get fit now is the time to purchase a gym membership, but for many people a healthy 2009 may be a real challenge. The issue of improving health and wellbeing is not going to go away but effective solutions probably lie beyond government propaganda.
