HOSTING the Commonwealth Games in Scotland failed to increase levels of exercise according to the most comprehensive survey of the nation’s health since the event.

The survey, involving 5000 adults, found rates of physical activity are almost exactly the same as they were before Glasgow 2014 took place.

While there was a very slight surge in exercise levels among children in the year of the games itself, this was not considered statistically significant and it has since slipped back.

Read more: Herald View - The disappointing legacy of the Commonwealth Games

The same survey also found 65 per cent of adults and 28 per cent of children living in Scotland are overweight or obese. Charity Cancer Research UK described the figures for children as "shocking" and warned of a "rising tide in ill health, including cancers".

Holding the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow cost £543m. Auditors previously found there were clear legacy plans in place, including plans to regenerate rundown areas of the city, and emphasised the need to assess achievement of long term aims such as a "healthier population".

However, the Scottish Health Survey - the official barometer of wellbeing and lifestyle choices, shows very little evidence of change in this area.

Diarmid Campbell-Jack, research director at ScotCen Social Research who conducted the survey for the Scottish Government, said: "The physical activity levels for men and women are pretty much what they were in 2012. Whether they would have gone down more without the Commonwealth Games is a possibility, but it is hard to establish if that is the case."

According to the research, the proportion of men who met exercise guidelines was 67 per cent in both 2012 and 2015, while for women the 2012 figure was 58 per cent rising to 59 per cent in 2015.

Read more: Herald View - The disappointing legacy of the Commonwealth Games

The number of schoolgirls engaged in recommended levels of physical activity peaked at 73 per cent in 2014, but dropped back to 69 per cent last year - worse than 2011. For boys there was a peak of 79 per cent in 2014, now down to 77 per cent - the same as 2008.

Professor Mike Weed, an expert in applied policy at Canterbury Christ Church University who advised on legacies from sporting events for the London Olympics, said: "I suppose it is disappointing in that Scotland and London did make significant investments to try and achieve this (a health legacy). Up until London the evidence was saying no previous games had achieved a participation legacy, but no previous games had tried. London tried and Scotland tried...

"The question is, is it inevitable that you cannot use games of this nature to increase physical activity or is it that Scotland did not do it right."

A range of programmes to encourage exercise were organised in conjunction with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow including new rambling routes to suit a range of abilities and youth engagement projects. It was also linked to the regeneration of the East End of Glasgow, although the first phase of a study examining exercise levels in the most affected communities found residents did less sport after the event than before.

Read more: Herald View - The disappointing legacy of the Commonwealth Games

Professor Ade Kearns, principal investigator on this East End research and an expert in urban studies at Glasgow University, said he was not surprised by the Scottish Health Survey results as sporting events mostly preach to the converted.

To make a difference, he said Scotland needed to "focus more on the mundane than the glamorous". He said outdoor spaces needed to be clean, attractive and well lit to encourage people to use them, adding "that just is not true of enough places". He also called for leisure and sports facilities to be free for those out of work or on low incomes, continuing "although providers might be doing the best they feel they can within their current budgets and financial envelopes for me that is not enough."

Aileen Campbell, Minister for Public Health and Sport, noted the Scottish Health Survey did show an increase in the proportion of children who are a healthy weight.

She said: “The 2014 Commonwealth Games have led to significant improvements in Scotland’s sporting infrastructure. We have world class facilities like the Emirates Arena, Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome and Tollcross International Swimming Centre that, crucially, are being regularly used by members of the public young and old as well as our elite sports stars. Across Scotland we have a network of 155 Community Sports Hubs, with 45 more to come by 2020, and 183 community projects funded by the Active Places Fund.

“The Games have also helped to secure high profile events, with an estimated economic impact of £18.5 million."