OBESITY AND DEVELOPMENT OF OSTEOARTHRITIS

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That this House notes that obesity and being overweight have been identified as major public health challenges, that obesity is a risk factor in the development of a vast range of related conditions, including osteoarthritis, that an estimated eight and a half million people in the UK currently live with osteoarthritis, a number likely to rise due to the spread of obesity, that obese patients tend to have a worse outcome from joint replacement surgery in the short term compared to those with a healthy weight and that weight loss can have a substantial, positive impact on pain levels endured; welcomes Arthritis Care's recommendation that weight loss should be advocated as a first-line management approach and packages of support should be put in place based on assessments of need that are personalised to the individual and holistic; and calls on the Government to support this campaign in order to help people who have and who will develop arthritis.