To think you can't ban food on trains?

[poshme]

In today's times (sorry rubbish at links) there's an article saying the outgoing chief medical officer wants to ban food on trains unless for medical reasons.
AIBU to think this is completely stupid & unworkable?
Apparently it's because we're snacking too much & too many children are obese.

I regularly catch trains with my kids- usually a 3-4 hr journey. Invariably it's a meal time, and part of passing the time is eating a packed meal. Yes- it's not the healthiest meal in the world & includes crisps & chocolate, but as part of a normal diet it's fine.

My kids are not overweight. In fact they're generally underweight.

If this is implemented they're never be able to enforce it surely?

ChardonnaysDistantCousin

What about the smoking ban then and it’s results? If you are genuinely interested in how key the environment is to shaping our health have a look at this www.bluezones.com/services/built-environment-impact-public-health/ the ban on eating on buses would be hard to enforce and a culture change but that was only one of the many recommendations

The reason I mentioned America was an example of how environment shapes us.

It's not allowed in Singapore on their rail system : -
In 1987, the Rapid Transit Systems (RTS) Act was established by Parliament and it was declared that no food or drink was to be consumed in MRT trains and stations. If you do, you will be issued a notification of offence which carries a fine of up to $500.

Singapore is so clean and efficient.

@Kpo58 just to say that food is not cheap in Japan at all!

It works there because they believe in ‘one thing at a time’ and it’s culturally rude to eat or drink whilst walking in the street (fine to stop briefly and take a drink/ small snack (if needed - but rude to walk doing so), or on public transport unless it’s a long distance train.

I was asked to leave the station in Singapore because I was drinking a bottle of water.....

What about the smoking ban then and it’s results? If you are genuinely interested in how key the environment is to shaping our health have a look at this

The smoking ban is completely different. If someone smokes, they immediately stink the carriage out and make it unhealthy for all the other passengers. Someone eating a chocolate bar doesn't affect the other passengers at all.

Things should only be banned if they interfere with other people. There might be a case for banning, say, a smelly curry, but a packet of wine gums should certainly be allowed.

Singapore is a one party state. That could be considered very tidy, I suppose.

The smoking ban example I used was to show how public health policies can positively affect people - the people around us yes but also less people since then have actually taken up smoking making us a healthier nation and saving nhs costs, if people were less overweight this would also save the nhs money. The recommendations she makes (the local travel was just one of them, which the media have unsurprisingly focused on, there were other better suggestions easier to put in place) are aimed at adjusting our environment to make us a healthier nation. That’s the overall point I was trying to make.

The smoking ban example I used was to show how public health policies can positively affect people

But it took decades to get there. We had non-smoking carriages in trains for decades. Likewise, smoking and non smoking areas on planes. Go back even longer and you had Gentlemen's smoking lounges. Basically, smokers were already accustomed to segregation, so a total ban was a natural extension and only when there were far fewer smokers - it could not have happened 50 years ago when most people smoked! Smoking had been banned completely on planes about 25? years ago. But it was the effect on other people which drove it, not the damage to the smoker themselves. It was because of passive smoking, the smell, fire risk, discoloring of interiors etc. You can't apply the same logic and reasoning to eating which mainly only affects the eater themselves. Sitting next to someone eating a maccy D burger isn't going to make you fat, but sitting next to smokers could cause you serious health problems. Completely different.

You could stop selling chocolate and other unhealthy food on trains and at rail stations as a start, even though I agree it would be almost impossible to ban its consumption on trains and buses.

@poshme

What kind of school do your kids go to where it's a 3-4 hours train ride to get to? And when do your kids get up, 3AM?

Btw, Japanese have been doing this for ages, and boy do they have long commutes. Nobody would think about eating on a public transport and they are one of the healthiest nations today.

I never said my kids get a train to school!
I was pointing out that when I catch a train after school with my kids that eating an evening meal is a reasonable thing to do.

Is it such a stretch for you to think that some kids have to travel to see their parents?

Kazzyhoward

Having a fitter healthier nation will indirectly positively effect the nation - for one less nhs money spent on diabetes care more spent on preventative screening, as an example. Agree that we would need a culture change but it was a recommendation not a policy they will implement tomorrow! It would need to be looked at, adjusted etc. But I was challenging the general consensus on here that we can’t change the environment to influence health - we can! In the Ukraine they took away vending machines from all schools and not only did it decrease the amount consumed in school but also outside it. I just think we can be too closed minded in the uk always saying nanny state.

Lots of countries ban food and drinks on public transport. It’s not difficult but it won’t happen because of profits. It’s revolting sitting next to someone on a crowded commuter train who is shovelling in some disgusting smelling concoction with no consideration for the other travellers. Drinks are less offensive although a carriage full of vino breath isn’t nice and the late train back from London is dreadful due to drunken, yobbish behaviour.
There used to be restaurant cars where people could eat. It used to be considered very common/rough/impolite to eat in the street or on public transport but people don’t seem to manage even short journeys without full mouths.