>>to boost understanding we need intelligent analysis of its causes
Shock number one: obese people eat less chocolate than those considered to be of ideal weight.
Shock number two: 10% of people questioned for a recent survey thought they could raise their fitness levels by changing channels or turning off the TV manually rather than using a remote control.
As the Department of Health spouted its usual mumbo-jumbo last week, naming and shaming the key culprits who, it said, had failed to cut enough salt from their products, two questions immediately sprang to mind. Firstly, just how much salt does Cadbury use in its products? Secondly, and more seriously, where is the consumer in all this?
Don’t get me wrong - industry has an important part to play in this health debate, as leading brands at the CIES World Food Summit in Rome admitted (p31). But, as so often happens with hugely important issues like this, a lack of joined-up thinking threatens to undermine any serious attempt to tackle this global epidemic.
Indeed, the game of ping-pong between government departments would be laughable if it were not for the fact it’s hindering the development of a real solution. And the misinformation being put out is not just damaging but insulting to consumers. Who can forget the revelation that the death of a three-year-old girl, used by the Health Select Committee to highlight obesity, actually resulted from a genetic defect?
We need to stop this pathetic blame game and get to grips with understanding the real causes of rising obesity. Why are 40% of people still using cars for short journeys instead of walking? Why do 60% say they don’t have enough time to be more active while finding time to watch TV and play computer games for several hours a day, as research has found?
A study by TNS goes some way to help. Importantly, it is based on true consumption habits, not what pressure groups think obese people are eating (p29). For some it’s reassuring, for others it’s less comfortable reading. But at least it’s the first step towards gaining the deeper insights we need if we are to truly come up with practical, convenient solutions.
Industry is doing more to meet this challenge than many of its opponents whose sole contributions seem to be to build on their own egos.
So let’s start shouting about it.
Spin is a fat lot of good
Shock number one: obese people eat less chocolate than those considered to be of ideal weight.
Shock number two: 10% of people questioned for a recent survey thought they could raise their fitness levels by changing channels or turning off the TV manually rather than using a remote control.
As the Department of Health spouted its usual mumbo-jumbo last week, naming and shaming the key culprits who, it said, had failed to cut enough salt from their products, two questions immediately sprang to mind. Firstly, just how much salt does Cadbury use in its products? Secondly, and more seriously, where is the consumer in all this?
Don’t get me wrong - industry has an important part to play in this health debate, as leading brands at the CIES World Food Summit in Rome admitted (p31). But, as so often happens with hugely important issues like this, a lack of joined-up thinking threatens to undermine any serious attempt to tackle this global epidemic.
Indeed, the game of ping-pong between government departments would be laughable if it were not for the fact it’s hindering the development of a real solution. And the misinformation being put out is not just damaging but insulting to consumers. Who can forget the revelation that the death of a three-year-old girl, used by the Health Select Committee to highlight obesity, actually resulted from a genetic defect?
We need to stop this pathetic blame game and get to grips with understanding the real causes of rising obesity. Why are 40% of people still using cars for short journeys instead of walking? Why do 60% say they don’t have enough time to be more active while finding time to watch TV and play computer games for several hours a day, as research has found?
A study by TNS goes some way to help. Importantly, it is based on true consumption habits, not what pressure groups think obese people are eating (p29). For some it’s reassuring, for others it’s less comfortable reading. But at least it’s the first step towards gaining the deeper insights we need if we are to truly come up with practical, convenient solutions.
Industry is doing more to meet this challenge than many of its opponents whose sole contributions seem to be to build on their own egos.
So let’s start shouting about it.
Spin is a fat lot of good
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