University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust has announced it will start to phase out the sale of soft drinks in its premises which have a high level of sugar.
It follows recent government warnings about the negative impact of having too much sugar in our diets.
As a nation, obesity has been on the rise for a decade or more now.
According to a recent Public Health England report, ‘Sugar Reduction, the evidence for action’, almost 25% of adults, 10% of 4 to 5 year olds and 19% of 10 to 11 year olds in England are obese, with significant numbers also being overweight.
Jackie Daniel, Chief Executive, UHMBT, said: “As healthcare professionals, we know what a healthy diet should consist of, but we also know in modern life, it is really difficult to find the time to get the balance right.
"As NHS organisations, I believe we should act as role models wherever we can for our local populations.
“Therefore, I am pleased to announce that as part of our ‘Flourish’ campaign, over the next two months, we will be removing all soft drinks from sale in our hospitals that contain high levels of sugar.
"It is all about moderation and yes, there are many other things we sell which can contribute to ill health, however, it is a start and over time, we will need to look at these other areas too.
In March 2016, UHMBT launched ‘Flourish’ - an ambitious campaign to improve the health and wellbeing of its workforce.
The first stage of the campaign was entitled ‘move more’, creating opportunities and sharing advice on the health benefits of being more active.
The next stage is ‘nourish’, which is concentrating on the importance to health of a nutritious diet.
The campaign will move through two other phases in the year, looking at mental health in the autumn and winter, before moving on to the importance of having a healthy heart in the New Year.
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