Lazy Britain Losing Battle of the Bulge

LONDON (March 16) -- Earlier this month, English dog owner Paul Railton was hauled before a court in the northeast of the country and fined $100 for walking his pooch from the comfort of his car. According to witnesses, the 23-year-old was spotted cruising down a country lane, holding the animal's leash through the window as it trotted loyally alongside his vehicle.

It would be easy to write off Railton as a lazy crank. But his refusal to get out of the auto and exercise himself, as well as his mutt, is emblematic of the epidemic of slothfulness that has slowly been sweeping across England. This lethargic crisis now threatens to trash both the country's health and wealth.

The scale of the problem was set out this week in a new report from England's chief medical officer. Sir Liam Donaldson says that up to 70 percent of adults are failing to meet the minimum recommended amount of weekly physical activity: five 30-minute sessions of heart-rate-raising exercise, such as a brisk walk with the dog. And although children's physical fitness around the world is falling by an average of 4.3 percent a decade, in England it's plummeting by up to 9 percent.

"Inactivity pervades the country. It affects more people in England than the combined total of those who smoke, misuse alcohol or are obese," Donaldson said. "Being physically active is crucial to good health. If a medication existed that had a similar effect on preventing disease, it would be hailed as a miracle cure."

This refusal to get up and get moving -- combined with an increasingly unhealthy diet rich in junk food and high-calorie booze -- is swelling the waistlines of the once svelte nation. According to the National Health Service, the male obesity rate has doubled since 1993 and now stands at 24 percent. Among women, it's shot up from 16 to 25 percent. (Around one-third of U.S. citizens are classified as obese, meaning they're at least 30 pounds over a healthy weight.)

And the bloat doesn't show any signs of slowing. By 2050, super-size Brits could account for up to two-thirds of the adult population, and a quarter of all children, the government's Office for Science warned in a report two years ago. Treating illnesses caused by that surge in obesity cases -- such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes -- would cost some $75 billion.

The country is already paying for its citizens' laziness. Tam Fry, a spokesman for the National Obesity Forum, notes that the British Army has been forced to extend basic training for soldiers from 12 to 14 weeks, as today's recruits simply aren't as fit as they used to be.

So why is Britain struggling to get in shape? It's partly down to the more sedentary nature of work. As the economy has shifted from agriculture and manufacturing to services such as banking, the number of people engaged in desk-bound jobs has doubled. Jobs in unskilled or semiskilled industries such as farming have halved.

However, other developed nations have experienced similar economic shifts without their populations turning into couch potatoes. (Britain is ranked 21 out of the European Union's 27 nations when it comes to physical activity.)

It's also not possible to pin the blame on the country's lack of sporting passion, as it is home to many of the world's best soccer teams -- whose stadiums are filled every weekend -- and over a third of all households have a subscription to a satellite sports channel.

What's absent is Brits' desire to be more than a fan, to actually get out on a soccer or rugby pitch and join in the game. "We're now a nation of spectators," said the National Obesity Forum's Fry -- a fitness fiend who talked to AOL News as he took his morning constitutional along the banks of the River Thames. "We love to play Fantasy Football, but in the majority, we prefer seeing other people on the field."

This unwillingness to work up a sweat isn't just confined to sport. A poll published last summer by Nuffield Trust -- a nonprofit health organization -- revealed that almost 60 percent of Britons would rather take a lift (elevator) rather than walk up two flights of stairs. More than a third said they'd never run to catch a bus. And 52 percent of dog owners, much like Railton, pleaded guilty to not walking Fido.

It's perhaps unsurprising to discover that Britons' bad habits have also damaged their furry friends' health. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals reports that half of the country's cats and dogs are now overweight.