To be angry with Justine Roberts

[T1mum3]

For saying on Jamie Oliver's facebook live chat that we should tell children in primary schools that they will lose a limb due to diabetes if they don't eat right? I'm angry because amongst primary school age children in the UK 5355 have Type 1 diabetes, and 7 have Type 2. Type 1 is autoimmune so not related to lifestyle.

All those kids will be fighting day and night, taking around 6 injections a day or wearing an insulin pump (putting a cannula in every two days), pricking their fingers 10 times a day and counting every single morsel of carbohydrate that passes their lips to try and keep themselves well enough to go to school and take exercise. They don't need to know about amputations yet.

99 per cent of children with diabetes have Type 1. They are made more vulnerable to bullying everyday because of the obsession with childhood obesity.

Anyone who hasn't got the message about healthy diets and kids yet obviously needs some kind of intervention. Type 2 diabetes is a huge and growing issue. But making diabetes and amputations into a boogy man to scare small children is disgusting.

I'm obese but I'm well aware of the dangers. I have an eating disorder I'm seeking helping but telling me the dangers will honestly just make it worse.

I think scaring children about food is just going to store up even more eating disorders in future to be honest.

And yes yes to the overeating liked with carers...

You're a journalist cum website owner Justine.

seriously.

your apologies are not even sincere.

It's noticeable that there are never calls for 'different names' for the infertility or osteoporosis or host of other complications brought in by anorexia. Or bulimia.

Or for liver disease (middle class scourge).

Or rugby or skiing (or various other sporting) injuries.

There's apparently something particularly deserving of blame about the self inflicted harm of FAT.

It's puzzling.

I think there is a general tendancy to blame - sadly.

People do mix up direct causes, and risk factors. For example not smoking will not prevent you from getting lung cancer, but will make it less likely.

People also become diabetic as a result of cancer sometimes and the surgery they undergo.

Until you've lived with type 1 diabetes you have NO idea how difficult it is to control. Night checks, every single night, to make sure their blood glucose doesn't go high precisely because you don't want them to get any of the long term complications. But the NHS won't fund the continuous glucose monitors (and even pumps in many cases) that would help people keep their levels under control so as a parent you either spend hundreds of pounds on the technology yourself or you accept that your child may be blind/amputated/on kidney dialysis before they're 30.

And still people like Justine vilify people who have their horrible condition through no fault of their own. Shame on you Justine- sincerely hope you start a mumsnet campaign on diabetes awareness as a result of this!

Please take heed your staff, even the highest members need Diversity training. It's time to face the fact that you are prejudiced, calassist and outright offensive towards minorities and it's time to try and fix that.

There is something in that.

Headofthehive55 I think it's more significant that smoking rates have barely fallen at all in about a decade, despite a massive increase in scary health warnings, an indoor smoking ban and no let-up in punitive tax rises.

Should we just stop caring about the remaining 20-odd % because it's so much lower than the 1970's? If what we are doing (mostly shaming, scaring and punishing smokers) has ceased to work it's time to try something different isn't it?

Apologies for the derail OP, I think there are lessons to be learned across public health about the role and pitfalls of shame as a tool for changing people's behaviour.

Plenty - I don't think of it as a derail. It's definitely to the point www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2866597/

I'm upset about the effect of the misplaced stigma on my child, but I also think the strategy is fundamentally flawed.

slender: "OP, that photo of your DS is very moving."

Thank you - he is so sweet when he holds my hand like that. We're the lucky ones though, as we have the technology he is using. As Flower says, it is really, really hard to get this stuff funded (we pay for some of it ourselves) and these messages about the drain on the NHS will make it more and more difficult for people to access.

It depends on whether you think halving if the rate is significant and worth feeling positive about.

Giving people information is not the same as shaming and blaming people. However, people have a right for this knowledge to be passed on and the risks and consequences of behaviours that they might undertake.

Often shock tactics are used: the belt up campaign and drink driving. Whether you think that is appropriate I don't know, but how you would get the message across in a different way is open to suggestions.

I think we need to educate to help children have empathy, and to not blame.

I think in a way you are holding Justine in too high a regard. She's a woman running a website and forum.

Not the PM. Or anyone with any real standing or influence.

That said, what she said was wrong.

I just don't get it about MN though. It's a chat site.

Curly - isn't that the point. She set up a website so why the hell would she speak to medical matters about which she seemingly understands so little??

JO is the one who "othered" poorer ppl 3 years ago to sell his "Save with Jamie" book even though it wasnt even aimed at ppl lower down the socio economic scale.

He kept banging the drum about "big flatscreen tellies" This was pointed out in a webchat but a few days later on the radio he just swopped telly for smartphone.

A hero? Yep Sure he is

Because people are stupid and say all sorts of stupid things.

Dare I say, I bet at times I've said things that are stupid too (daily I'd imagine?)

It's just she happens to get asked stuff publicly and I guess she just responds.

She's said sorry and I can only assume she means it.
My only point really was - who even is she ?

I think this thread is getting quite personal now.

Just to finish as I get the point now, really if someone goes home to their child and tells them type 2 diabetes will mean their limbs will be removed - because a random person who isn't a doctor said so - welllllll ... I dunno. Just seems a bit off

curlysue
Justine Roberts is actually one of the most influential women in the UK

The question of how to get people to think long term - how to get people to delay gratification or put aside momentary satisfaction for long term better health - is the holy grail really and I suspect different things work for different people.

When I was stopping smoking, the 'put the cash in a jar' thing didn't work for me at all, but some people find it really effective. Actually if I'm honest what stopped me the first time was stigma - I got pg and I didn't want to face the horrified responses of family and friends if I carried on. (I started again afterwards - whole other story - vaping has saved me)

I've got friends who absolutely are affected by messages as simple as 'do this, it's good for your health'. And my Ds2 is scared (as a result of messaging at school) about his dad dying of lung cancer - he's now nagging his dad ceaselessly every time he lights up. Bad thing? I don't know. It's a realistic message and his dad is gradually starting to get the equipment together to stop smoking because the nagging is working.

When I was in my 20s, any messaging about health in older age completely bypassed me as I couldn't envisage being 60. Now I'm knocking on 50, it all feels a lot more real and I'm consciously adjusting diet and exercise in anticipation of menopause and aging.

I think my point is that this sort of thing requires a range of different messages for different personality types, different ages, people with addictions etc. Obviously the messages have to be truthful and based on fact, but beyond that given the cost of obesity to the NHS I'm not sure anything is completely out of bounds. Some of us respond to scare tactics, some don't.

Well I never.

Lapin if she's one of the most influential people in the uk I think we have problems. A) because she talks on matters she has little to no experience or knowledge of, and B) because for a person who started a website to have such influence is barking.

In fact if Lapin is right, maybe this should be move to sleb twaddle and then we can all ignore it.

Awk c'mon now Curly that's uncalled for.

Disagree with what she said, be angry at it either but don't piss on her achievements.

Anyone can start a forum but it takes a lot of work to make one as successful as MN has become.

be angry at it even

But MN is influential, OnceMore.

I don't see why this thread has to turn into a personal attack on Justine.