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The chief medical officer in England is considering taxing all unhealthy food products to discourage parents from buying them to combat childhood obesity.
Professor Dame Sally Davies will examine what can still be done to meet the Government's ambition to halve youth obesity by 2030, with one in three children leaving elementary school with an overweight or obese.
The government tax on sugar on soft drinks has already been hailed as a success in reducing the amount of sugar consumed by children.
"I want parents to be encouraged to buy healthy foods," Lady Sally told BBC News.
"We have to make sure that fresh fruits and vegetables are cheap. Maybe we should subsidize them by charging more, by taxing unhealthy foods.
"Parents are then pushed to buy the healthy version because it's cheaper. I want the food basket that parents buy does not cost anymore. "
According to the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs, the number of children considered seriously obese is at an all time high.
Health Secretary Matt Hanbad commissioned a report to Dame Sally – scheduled for September – to urgently review approaches at the international, regional and national levels.
The report will make a series of recommendations to the government.
Experts from different sectors met Dame Sally at a roundtable Thursday to discuss initiatives and solutions to solve the problem.
Mr. Hanbad said, "We have gone further than any other country to reduce childhood obesity.
"Our reformulation programs are world leaders.
"Children across the country run a kilometer a day through our work with elementary schools and we are consulting on a number of new advertising and promotion laws to make the environment healthier for our children.
"I have no doubt that these policies will be effective."
He added, "What I do not underestimate is the magnitude of the problem we face and we should not rest on our laurels.
"By 2030, if we want to see a real improvement in the health of our children, we will have to use all the tools in our arsenal. That is why I asked today the Chief Medical Officer of Health to report on what we could do on the other. "
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