In a boost to the gym and physical activity sector, the UK's deputy chief medical officer, Dr Jenny Harries, has called on Brits to get fit and lose weight this summer, in preparation for the predicted return of COVID-19 in the winter months.

Dr Harries says obesity is a risk the UK can 'do something about'.

Research from the University of Liverpool has shown that being obese increases the risk of dying from SARS-CoV-2 by 38 per cent.

Data from the NHS also indicates that 75 per cent of people who have been hospitalised with COVID-19 were overweight or obese, compared to around 66 per cent of the population.

The UK has one of the highest obesity rates in Europe, with a third of children being overweight, along with the two-thirds of adults.

Prime minister, Boris Johnson was famously converted to the pursuit of weight loss after his own time in intensive care with COVID-19.

Johnson allegedly weighed 17 stone and 7 lbs when he was admitted to hospital and at 5' 9", this makes his BMI 36.4, classing him as obese.

The NHS says a man his age and height should weigh between 8st 13lb and 12st.

It's not known how much weight Johnson has lost since that time – if any.

A new government push on weight loss to tackle COVID-19 has seen the recent publication of a consultation paper suggesting the government would implement a curb all multi-buy promotions of unhealthy products, such as sweets.

Retailers would also be called on to ensure at least 80 per cent of their sales of volume promotions are for healthy products.

FOOTNOTE

Exercise has also been found to guard against COVID-19 in other ways.

Research by Professor Zhen Yan at the University of Virginia has shown that exercise is effective in guarding against the worst effects of COVID-19.

Yan studied an antioxidant called extracellular superoxide dismutase (EcSOD) that's released in the body during exercise.

His work "strongly supports” the possibility that higher levels of EcSOD in the body can prevent or at least reduce the severity of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) – one of the worst outcomes of COVID-19.

EcSOD does this by hunting down free radicals, binding to organs and protecting tissue.

Find out more about this research in HCM news here .