Junk food adverts and obesity

[Spartacus]

There is an article on the BBC today that said Walls ice cream are going to stop aiming adverts at the youth and produce healthier treats.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51479770

This really is the tip of the obesity iceberg problem IMHO.

Should all junk food adverts (burgers, fried chicken and fast food delivery services for example) be banned on screen,in print or other media to help promote a healthier diet as out of sight is out of mind ?

Or is that promoting a nanny state ?

[Blah Blah]

The cost of treating obesity related medical conditions far outweighs any concerns we should have for the food industry. In an ideal world, education would be enough to make us all eat responsibly. But we have a food industry that stuffs our supermarkets and high streets with processed food that leaves us hungry (helping us to overeat) and turns us all into sugar and processed fat addicts. And that is before we get onto the methods used to provide cheap meat. It completely baffles me, that when we know so much about nutrition and the body, that we continue to do nothing about so much bad food.

[Gaynor Hill]

Yes people do know they just can't be bothered to cook it's easy to do something in 30 mins and with pre packed salads ready chopped veg all works out cheaper if you cannot be bothered to do it yourself

[Spartacus]

There is a fascinating (long) read on how ultra processed foods took over our shopping baskets in the Guardian

Well worth a read over a chocolate biscuit but I hope after reading it you will think about reducing your chocolate biscuit and other ultra processed foods consumption.

https://www.theguardian.com/food/2020/feb/13/how-ultra-processed-food-took-over-your-shopping-basket-brazil-carlos-monteiro?CMP=share_btn_tw

[Spartacus]

Also worth a gander at this website and they offer an app (if you want to install it) that gives you the score of processed foods so that you can try and eat healthier ones

https://world.openfoodfacts.org/

[KidKruger]

If you can?t pick it or kill it, don?t eat it.

People need to own the problem with processed foods themselves, relying on Govt for protection is naive.

The food industry is set up (and supported by Govt) to give you least value and max profit to orgs.

[seenbeen]

A friend works in a sixth form college and the canteen dished up unhealthy stuff until the teachers complained and the menus changed to much healthier foods. The students then started buying their food in the local high street- kebabs, chips, fried chicken etc so the canteen reverted back to the awful stuff.

[Spartacus]

Seenbeen that's a truly sad state of affairs, that kids are so brainwashed into eating badly that they choose it over healthy options.

I wonder if the adverts were banned and healthy options are promoted from a young age, then over say ten years, that the nation's diet would change as young people aren't indoctrinated into poor diets ?

Something's got to give before the waistbands of the nation does.

[JohnL]

seenbeen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> A friend works in a sixth form college and the

> canteen dished up unhealthy stuff until the

> teachers complained and the menus changed to much

> healthier foods. The students then started buying

> their food in the local high street- kebabs,

> chips, fried chicken etc so the canteen reverted

> back to the awful stuff.

Why not healthy on most days then on Friday a treat day.

[Spartacus]

Whilst I am an advocate of reducing advertising for junk food and a more healthy diet for all, I think that in this case TfL are a little over zealous : 

BBC News - West End play poster banned by TfL over 'unhealthy' cake
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-66119218