Bermuda's children face shorter life spans than their parents due to high levels of diabetes and obesity, according to a health expert.

In a presentation at the Hamilton Rotary Club, Dr. Jennifer Attride-Stirling, Health Promotion Coordinator for the Department of Health, presented 'Well Bermuda', a national health promotion strategy. The strategy was launched in November.

During the presentation, Dr. Attride-Stirling explained the health strategy was necessary because the main causes of death have changed in the past 50 years. She said today's health problems are strongly related to lifestyle factors and there is a shift from infectious diseases to chronic non-communicable diseases. The three themes she focused on were healthy people, healthy families and healthy communities. She spent the most time on the first theme with Rotarians learning that 63 percent of Bermudians were overweight or obese in comparison to 57 percent in 1999.

Dr. Attride-Stirling said in the media there have been reports saying in leading Western countries, almost a quarter of the population are overweight. "A quarter of our people are overweight. We're already there", she said.

The largest group of overweight or obese were black people with 73 per cent and people aged 55 to 64 at 69 per cent.

"Everywhere in the world people underestimate their weight and overestimate their height. We're right up there with the country leaders," she said.

She explained that child obesity and diabetes has reached a high in Bermuda with 24 percent of children being overweight or obese and 29 per cent of black children being overweight or obese.

Dr. Attride-Stirling stressed the important of health saying: "Today's generation will have shorter life spans that their parents if this continues. A child that has diabetes at ten or 12 will have heart problems in their twenties and be dead in their thirties."

She also said the leading cause of deaths in Bermuda was heart disease with 36 per cent of all deaths in 2005 caused by heart related problems.

The statistics for high blood pressure and high cholesterol dramatically increased in the past eight years with 25 percent of Bermudians having high blood pressure compared to five percent in 1999. Thirty-four percent of Bermudians have high cholesterol compared to two percent in 1999. Dr. Attride-Stirling said an action plan is currently in the works for each of the goals.