Prof James has urged the Australian food industry and regulators to impose the labeling system following a decision just days ago by British authorities to help countries throughout Europe with the traffic light labelling system.

"Six months ago this idea was considered radical however detailed analysis of public understanding in Britain has shown it is the most promising single measure for informing the public about the quality of their diet and a potentially potent weapon in the fight against obesity.

"Simple red, amber or green labels show if foods have acceptable levels of fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt. The evidence from supermarkets in Britain now is that the traffic lights encourage food manufacturers to improve the quality of particular products and the consumer immediately responds", Prof James said.

In Australia the Food Regulation Standards Committee (FRSC) is currently considering recommendations on front-of-pack food labelling.

The Health Lifestyle Forum, was opened by the Minister for Health and Ageing, The Hon Tony Abbott will gather leading obesity and health specialists to help develop new intervention strategies. In its eighth year, the forum is hosted by Senator Guy Barnett and organised by the University of Sydney.

Experts at the forum considered key issues including:

Effective health service delivery for overweight and obese children and adolescents Foetal, early life and the preschool years- what needs to be done? Monitoring/benchmarking-Options for measuring and tracking the epidemic Industry and private sector solutions-encouraging support and engagement Schools and the wider community Addressing the environments in which we live and function

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The researchers were encouraged that most of the patients and their caregivers were interested in learning more about their illness, and requested information on how better to manage medications, diet, exercise, symptoms and related quality of life issues. Many of them wanted to see their rural community form support groups for chronic illness and management.

Heart failure is the most common reason for hospitalization of seniors in Canada. In addition rural patients are more likely to be hospitalized than their urban counterparts, and due to differences in prescribing, are less likely to get the drugs they need at the right dosages, Clark said.

Preliminary results of the study suggest that support for the rural patients should stress the importance of recognizing symptoms and seeking help earlier from health care professionals, and should harness the strong work ethic evident in the rural population.

The researchers also recommend that rural and urban health care regions continue to find ways to improve rural access to specialist health professionals in heart care, such as physicians, nurses and pharmacists.

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