Tax the Fizz!

[TheOstrich]

But do we have an obesity epidemic?

Your resourceful Ostrich commissioned a survey this lunchtime. Positioned where he could observe the door of the local neighbourhood McDonalds between 12:20 and 12:35, a note was made of the numbers of people arriving at said establishment.

The results were:
Clincally obese - 31
Not clinically obese - 49
Giving an obesity ratio for the population of 38.75%

Rider: Some of the clinically obese may, of course, have been (a) pregnant or (b) just well bundled up coz it was cold out there today.

Costs of survey: £5.49 for a Big Tasty Medium Meal with regular coffee, plus an unspecified amount for cleaning mayo off shirt ......

Not sure what this proves, but if you wish the Ostrich to expand the survey sample, don't hesitate to let me know.

[Workingman]

Not sure about you expanding the survey Ossie, but if you keep going in at £5.49 a throw your wallet will get a lot slimmer and you will definitely expand.

[Kaz]

Ossie

Did you use scales or fat calipers to measure the survey participants???? Oh and how is the black eye.............???

[TheOstrich]

Thank you both ....

Joking apart though, McDonalds has indeed become pretty expensive for what you actually get. In fact, fast food on the hoof generally (no, not another horseburger pun!) is no longer cheap. We've remarked on this before on VV when discussing fish 'n chip prices, so on - but it's true, you couldn't afford to dine at fast food joints frequently nowadays without running up a sizeable hole in your wallet. Didn't used to be like that ....

The only thing I would say about McDonalds in its favour, though, is that they do do a decent cup of coffee.

[JoM]

The only thing I would say about McDonalds in its favour, though, is that they do do a decent cup of coffee.

They do, I often get a coffee from there when I'm out and about.

You're right though, fast food isn't a cheap option nowadays.

[Suff]

But do we have an obesity epidemic?

Depends on what you call obesity.

If you ask whether we've got an overweight epidemic, almost certainly. Far more than 50% of the people could do with losing some weight or other.

France now has a serious issue. The McDo culture has really taken off and there is now a sizeable portion of younger children who are starting to balloon. Something you never really saw in France before. For more info on how the French do food and lifestyle, Mrs S is currently reading "French children don't throw food". Whilst she new a fair amount of it, having taught in the local schools for a year, there were a lot of surprises too.

Then we have to ask "What really is obesity". Because if you asked someone just post WWII, you would get a completely different answer from, say, a 16 year old today. Society and accepted norms change as the general weight of the population changes.

As WM and others have noted here, I often see young girls poured into clothes which, to be blunt, make them incredibly ugly. Girls that fat when I was young would have gone to extended lengths to hide the fat. Nowadays it seems the norm to show it off.

We are being Americanised in this and it is not really a good move for the population as a whole.

[Workingman]

There is something that does not match up and it confuses and worries me. The statistics, and casual observation, show that most of those affected by being overweight or obese are from the lower income groups - not all, but most. We also know, from what our wallets tell us, that junk/fast food is way more expensive, calorie for calorie, than ordinary food. Taxing this sort of food would hit the poorest the hardest.

So why do they buy it, and keep going back for more? It does not make sense.

Our local ASDA is next to a secondary school. It has a chiller cabinet dedicated to sandwiches selling from £2.69 and upwards! They fly of the shelves come lunchtime, yet the ingredients for one week's worth could be bought for not much more than one sandwich. It's madness!

[Suff]

Asda is certainly not cheap as cheapness goes. Aldi and Lidl hold that spot along with some other shops. Sandwiched fly of the shelves because it's just easier for the workers. Most companies now have nowhere for people to eat and very few even have a canteen of any kind. Even if they do have a canteen it's either quite expensive or extremely bad for you. All major supermarkets now do "meal deals" for their snacks so people can stock up with fizzy drinks, sandwiches and crisps for less.......

Own brank cola, own brand chocolate, own brand crisps, budget pizzas, lasagne, ice creams. This is what is making the poor fat. It's cheap and it's a disaster. I noticed this a long time ago, when trying to diet away from home. Pretty much anything which is not good for you is cheap, anything which IS good for you tends to be expensive.

The only diet which is cheap is hunger.....

But our perceptions have changed and what the shops are pushing at us have changed too. I just looked at Asda online. Go to the family favourites, got the food cupboard, go to the frozen section, see what the top items are that they are selling you.

Then think about how much energy that is......

Also breaded this, breaded that, easy to cook, quicker, faster, etc. You would think some of the poorest have the most time to make the food up from cheap ingredients. However, in fact, many of them spend the least time on preparing food.

My mother once told me that my Grandfather (her father), lost 8 stone by cutting out the two loaves of bread he ate a day. He was 5'2 and had been 20 stone. No fizzy drinks, not a big pub goer, was a smoker as >66% of men were at the time. Just bread, lots and lots of cheap bread. Oh and butter of course.... The total disaster mix, eat bread which pushes carbohydrates into our system and the fat from the butter goes straight into our body cells instead of being burned. I have a great weakness for bread and butter, just as he did....

[Kaz]

Own brank cola, own brand chocolate, own brand crisps, budget pizzas, lasagne, ice creams. This is what is making the poor fat. It's cheap and it's a disaster. I noticed this a long time ago, when trying to diet away from home. Pretty much anything which is not good for you is cheap, anything which IS good for you tends to be expensive.

I absolutely agree! I could feed my family for about £30-£40 per week I reckon if all we ate was the above, plus cheap own brand white bread and butter. Most of the BOGOFs tend to be on 'junk' although I have noticed that improving lately As it is I spend over £100pw on good meat, fresh veg, juices, yoghurts, seeded breads, good cheese, nice wine.................I'm lucky to be able to afford it, and also to have the ability if we fell on harder times to cook most things from scratch, so I could feed us well for rather less

The bottom line is that to feed a family cheaply and healthily takes effort (to source the best deals) and skill (to know how to cook it) and many people are unable or unwilling to use either

[cromwell]

The bottom line is that to feed a family cheaply and healthily takes effort (to source the best deals) and skill (to know how to cook it) and many people are unable or unwilling to use either

Yes - you remember the Karen Matthews case Kaz, the woman who kidnapped her own daughter? She was getting circa £340 pw in benefits, but never cooked for her children; everything was a takeaway.
Cheap processed food is often high in calories but low in nutrients.