The government intends to set up a national platform to address the problem of obesity, Health Minister Louis Deguara said.

The platform will develop, implement and monitor action plans to tackle obesity and to create a favourable environment where people can assume a greater degree of control over their own health.

"I am cautiously optimistic that if certain aspects of the environment can be successfully modified, the current childhood obesity crisis can be at least reduced within the next five to 10 years," he said, without going into further detail.

Speaking during a ministerial conference on obesity and health problems caused by extra weight in Istanbul, Dr Deguara said two-thirds of Maltese men and more than half of Maltese women are overweight or obese.

A 2002 study showed that only 32 per cent of men and 44 per cent of women reported having a normal body mass index.

He added that since people tend to underestimate their weight when self reporting, the figures are conservative ones.

Moreover, he said, only 18 per cent of men and 10 per cent of women carry out regular leisure time physical activity, with the rates being much lower in the low socio-economic groups.