OBESE people must be told that exercise "does not contribute usefully to weight loss", one of Scotland's leading nutrition experts has said.
Professor Mike Lean, chair of Human Nutrition at Glasgow University, said the amount of daily exercise required to maintain weight loss was likely to be achieved only by "serious sportspeople".
He said public health efforts to tackle obesity must prioritise changing eating habits over increasing physical activity.
Read more: Scotland's plan for junk food crackdown 'world-leading'
Prof Lean was responding to the Scottish Government's diet and obesity consultation, which has proposed measures such as banning junk food deals and curbing the calories in restaurant and takeaway meals.
However, it also asked respondents how encouraging physical activity could tackle the nation's weight crisis.
Prof Lean said: "Physical activity is great for health, and especially for mental health. It contributes to avoiding obesity, and to maintaining weight loss, but it is most important to state clearly that physical activity does not contribute usefully to weight loss, to help people already obese.
"The amount of physical activity required to prevent obesity and to maintain loss weight is a very great deal more than is now normal in Scotland. The amount associated with weight loss maintenance is [more than] 15,000 steps every day. This is normal for people who go through childhood and on to adulthood as serious sports-people, but even they have difficulty sustaining it."
Read more: Fight against obesity must focus on cutting calories
He added: "We should encourage physical activity, but the dominant effort must be to change eating habits if the aim is to reduce obesity and its complications."
In its response, the British Takeaway Campaign (BTC) said calorie limits and bans on meal deals "risk dealing a significant blow to a sector which is of vital importance to Scotland". The industry was worth £400 million to Scotland's economy in 2016.
Read more: Tough new sugar target "foolish", says Prof Mike Lean
The BTC added that it also opposed plans to restrict fast food adverts on buses, trains and transport hubs, describing it as "an unwarranted clampdown on legitimate promotion of food that there is a clear demand for – including healthy options, such as grilled shish kebabs".
Public Health Minister Aileen Campbell said: “Our forthcoming strategy will include world leading proposals to restrict the promotion of foods high in fat, salt or sugar. Improving the food environment is the single biggest change we want to see and we are not afraid to show ambition and daring in our approach.”
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