Boris Johnson has called on each of the 32 London Boroughs to adopt a new city-wide approach to tackling childhood obesity in the lead up to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Speaking at the launch of his health consultation - The London Health Inequalities Strategy - the London mayor outlined plans for a joint bid to increase fitness levels and to enable challenges against fast food firms and advertisers who target youngsters with unhealthy food. Among the recommendations outlined in the mayor's strategy is the use of sports to help young people build self-confidence and a new campaign to promote parks and green spaces to Londoners.

Johnson said: "Together we need to work on improving access to simple sports like football, swimming, and cycling that provide great physical exercise. We also need to provide vulnerable families with dietary advice and access to affordable healthier food. "It is unacceptable with the world's greatest sporting event in our midst our kids are still being lured into consuming excessive sweets and junk instead of balanced meals and healthy snacks."