OBESE and overweight people have cost the borough’s health services nearly £80m in the last year, according to a report.

Figures released by the Department of Health show treating overweight and obese people in the borough cost Bromley PCT £77.2m, making it the 11th most costly area in London from a total of 31.

This is expected to rise to around £80m by 2010 and to £85.7m by 2015 - an increase of nearly £10m in less than a decade.

Chairman of the Bromley Diabetes Support Group, Margaret Elsdon, says while obesity is not a cause of diabetes, it is a strong factor.

She said: “The bigger you get around the stomach area, the harder it is for the pancreas to produce insulin.

“If people were leaner around the middle, there would be less incidents leading to diabetes.

“There’s a big link between obesity and diabetes but it’s not the main cause.”

Bromley PCT chief executive Simon Robbins told the trust’s AGM last month (September): “We know that if you are obese from the first years of your life it will affect you.

“If we don't do something about obesity and help individuals to help themselves, the NHS will be overwhelmed by the increasing number of very sick people.”

The Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson said: “The link between obesity and preventable illnesses, such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer is undeniable.

“In England almost two-thirds of adults and a third of children are either overweight or obese.

“Without effective action this could rise to nine in ten adults and two-thirds of children by 2050.”

A survey by the NHS in 2005 estimated 17.6 per cent of people in Bromley were obese, which was below both the London average of 18.4 per cent and the national average of around 23 per cent.