Not poetry but rambling on obesity

The UK government has proposed the idea of a ‘fat tax’. This is whereby a tax is enforced upon foods with the worst health implications, so therefore this would apply mostly to the foods with the highest fat content.

Whilst such a proposition is understandable (the obesity epidemic in Britain is quickly spiralling towards the same heights as America, fattest country in the world as stated by many) it is also questionable.

Recently the smoking ban came into place whereby smoking became illegal in enclosed public spaces. As a smoker myself, it has become something of an inconvenience, but I am in support of the movement. Smoking not only has implications for the smoker him/herself, but for those around them. In an open public space smoke simply wafts away with no implications for the surrounding people, unless they choose to stand right next to the smoker in question’s mouth and take heaving big lungfuls. So therefore the ban on smoking in enclosed public spaces not only has potential benefits for the UK’s ever decreasing number of smokers- restricting access to smoking areas will surely kick-start many to quit- but for the public on the whole the potential health benefits are immense.

So as the smoking-related deaths inevitably decrease, we must surely turn our attention to the other large killer in the UK, obesity. Taxing fatty foods limits the amount that people can afford, and therefore the amount they can eat. Or is this untrue? We are also a nation of borrowers- debt reconciliation adverts bombard our TV, radio, magazine, and newspaper media on a daily basis. Obese people are essentially addicted to food. Where some who are addicted to shopping or plastic surgery or supporting their football team may get themselves into debt in an attempt to keep up the unattainable habit, who is to say that the same won’t apply to the obese? In increasing the price of fatty food, we run the risk of also increasing the level of debt in the UK. Besides, obesity is not an affliction which affects anyone but the individual. Smoking does, but have you ever heard of passive eating? Yes it will begin to affect family and friends when the obese person’s health suffers, but physically it can cause no harm by proxy.

Taxing fatty food would also push Great Britain into the category of a ‘nanny state’, whereby the individual is no longer as such, but one of a group of slim, celery munching drones. Also, what happens to the rest of us who enjoy the odd chocolate bar now and again but remain in the healthy weight range? Should we be essentially punished for the errors and misfortunes of others? In my opinion it can be viewed in essence as a violation of human rights. We have the right to get fat if we want to, we have the right to eat ten crackers with fatty cream cheese and think that just because no-one saw then it didn’t count. We also have the right to decide for ourselves when it is time to put down the Mars bar and opt for an apple. And a fair amount of us are capable of making that decision for ourselves. I don’t want to pay extra for the family sized bar of Dairy Milk I curl up with on the sofa on a weekend and munch on whilst watching repeats of QI. I don’t want to have to save up for my beloved Austrian smoked cheese. If we must remove the human right to get fat, then why not remove the human right for dignity? Why not charge more for fatty food the heavier you are? Get weighed at the tills and then they will calculate the amount to pay. Ten stone female aged 18? One pound please. Twenty stone female aged 18? Five pounds please. Add humiliation to the bargain and that really will reduce the number of obese people. The poor people wouldn’t dare venture to the supermarket, and therefore will slim down in no time. Congratulations government, you really have succeeded. You have turned your nation into blubbering embarrassed self-loathing anorexics, incapable of making choices for themselves.

Education could be the key, not tax. I’ve certainly never been taught within school the dangers of food with high levels of fat, salt, or sugar. My mother taught me that, and I can tell whether what I put in my mouth is going to refresh and nourish me, or comfort and bloat me.

Make your own decision ad to whether the ‘fat tax’ is friend or foe, but in my opinion it is a last resort, not a complete solution. Besides, where is all that extra tax money going anyway? I’m curious to know. Rehab for the recovering obese? This is not the Britain I know and love.