THE bleak statistic revealed in today’s front page report make an absolutely outstanding argument for battling to improve public health.

By a happy coincidence, so does the first person piece we are delighted to publish on this page today from our county’s public health chief.

As he so rightly says, coronavirus does not target the poor – but it has a far greater chance of seriously harming someone whose circumstances mean they already have poor health.

So what are the causes? Poor diet is an absolutely enormous one, and a problem that public health chiefs have desperately wanted to tackle for years.

The nutritional value of the fast food that people across Oxfordshire queued up to buy this week as those outlets reopened is regularly pitiful: junk food which is high in sugar, salt and fat can contribute to obesity, diabetes, heart disease and a range of other problems which all lead to tens of thousands of premature deaths every year.

People who already have these problems because of their diet are more likely to suffer badly and die from the coronavirus.

Another major factor is exercise: those who are lucky enough to live out in the countryside or in beautiful areas might well be more likely to go out for a nice walk or a bike ride; if you live in the middle of a housing estate you might be less likely to do so.

Education about all of these things also varies from area to area, based partly on how educated people's parents are, but also simply on what people's priorities are: if you live in a poor area, are in and out of work, and your friends and family battle with problems associated with poverty, then making sure you eat your five a day might not be the top of your to-do list.

The challenge is enormous, and there are absolutely no quick fixes, but the potential rewards for individuals and society as a whole are enormous.

A new focus on tackling this huge problem would indeed be a great thing to come out of this terrible pandemic.