Remember bird flu? Or rather, the bird flu scares. It was a threat, a very real one. And oh how we panicked! The plague was upon us and we were doomed. Actually, we were wrong – for now at least.
But what happens when a real epidemic hits? Simple: eat, drink and by god be merry!
Britain is currently suffering from an obesity epidemic that has seen 1 in 4 of the adult population being classed as obese.
It’s not just adults suffering – one in every ten children in the UK is obese. Their weight is at a level high enough that it endangers their health.
It is diagnosed by a person's Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared. If BMI exceeds 30, then a person is obese.
So a man, 5ft10 weighing 13 stone is overweight. Weighing just 14 ½ stone however is obese. And he is certainly not alone. As we consume more and more our health is more at risk but we still do not heed the warnings.
Obesity increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and cancer.
The problem is not just excess consumption. It’s excess consumption of the wrong foods. The junk food, the chocolate, the crisps and all those little pleasures which have now become part of our everyday diet.
Junk food is the big one. The UK is swamped by fast food outlets. Almost every town and city has one(at the very least), feeding a whole nation’s addiction to a food which is fast poisoning them.
Research has found the sugars and fats in fast food to be as addictive as nicotine and heroin.
The addiction proliferates as we understand the why we eat it. It’s cheap, it tastes good and most of all, it requires minimal effort.
Throughout the last century, numerous technological advances have been made to make our lives easier. But now, as our lives speed up we are slowing down, piling on the pounds and posing a serious danger to ourselves.
It’s addictive, causes heart problems, high blood pressure and increases the risk of cancer – remind you of anything?
Still not sure? There was a time believe it or not, when smoking was considered healthy. Years of research found it was killing people, that everyday habit for the millions was suddenly deadly.
Got it yet? Exactly. Fast food – tobacco for the fat generation. It dangers are well known but through years of denial, it has become part of our lifestyle. Part we accept, rarely blinking when the health warnings are thrown in our faces.
The tides appear to be changing though. According to reports this week, Burger King's advert for the 841-calorie Double Whopper burger is being investigated by the Advertising Standards Agency.
The ‘Are You Man Enough?’ ads feature an army of ‘real’, ‘manly’ men eating the burger – because they’re man enough. Are we really expected to believe that it is the sign of a real man to gorge night and day on burgers filled to the brim with saturated fats, salts and pretty much everything else we are told is bad for us?
Legislation was passed to ban tobacco companies from advertising in order to protect people’s health and surely it won’t be long before the fast food industry suffers the same fate.
As the fast food generation grows older and the NHS grows weaker, a health crisis is imminent as we continue to advertise one of the UK’s greatest health dangers.
The government has a responsibility to protect the nation’s health, to really hammer home the message of healthy eating, especially in children.
It doesn’t stop at school dinners but must continue in all areas, from health warnings to responsible advertising.
Anyway, I’m off to work on a new advertising campaign.
Crack - are you man enough? Buy a kid's pack and get a free toy!!
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