To think peoples lives are crap enough without needing the government to interfere with Meal Deals

[Jeansmeansheinz]

FFS just let people have the pleasure of a Meal Deal. I really don't need the Government telling me what I can and can't eat.

In all the meal deal places that I go to, there are lots of healthy options in the snack and drink options. Therefore I think that the same people who go for the full fat crisps and coke option will just go for this in other ways without meal deals, and vice versa.

However, some people will go for the higher calories-for-cost option because they are managing their budget and their calorific needs this way. I do a bit of both, depending what else I am going to eat that day.

I don't think it is the 2-fors and meal deals that are the issue per se, I think it's other complex factors in society. Stress and lack of sleep being two important ones. Time and energy costs and lack of facilities to cook being 3 more.

600 calories is actually quite a lot for lunch!
Especially considering it's probably 5 days a week

That really depends on the persons lifestyle and what else they're eating that day. Plenty of manual labourers for example get meal deals.

How about if they heavily subsidised leisure centres and built new ones. Get heavily discounted healthy lunch options in workplaces more, encourage employers to give an hour or two off per week to attend a gym or have classes yoga aerobics or whatever in workplaces at the end of the day. There's lots that could be done. Being nanny state and stopping people getting an affordable lunch that they choose is wrong to me.

My mum was overweight, possibly obese. I think partly was genetic (I didn't know my GPS but pictures of them show they were definitely overweight and also her brother was very overweight). She was a very good cook and cooked a lot from scratch. She would say she was "naughty" if she had a 2 stick kitkat or a penguin biscuit for example (probably 110 kcal ish) but wouldn't have any qualms about having a slice of cake that either she or a friend had baked because it was home made
If she made a quiche for example it would be nicer than a bought one but also much bigger.

Having said that I think homecooking is healthier if you are careful about portion sizes.

I know people are thinking Labour getting in here will be great and all that but Wales makes me feel more reticent.

I don’t want that here tbh (and feel for those who don’t want it there either)

Ditto. Walking is exactly what caused my weight loss (5 stones to date), and what brought down my blood pressure and blood sugar levels.

Prior to that, I was dieting on and off, going to the gym once or twice a week, doing occasional golf, tennis, squash, etc., but nothing consistently every day, and weight wouldn't shift.

Daily walking 10,000 steps has worked miracles. I'm ashamed that I still eat a lot of crap, but weight has come off and has stayed off, by consistent daily walking, rain or shine.

Walking everywhere/having a dog etc, thats a difference, but going out for a half hour walk a day just isnt effective. Good on you though, Im really not trying to be disparaging, I just think that if people want to lose weight that arent usually active, there are better ways to do it. Walking isnt a strenuous activity, people would be better off swimming or on a push bike

Yes I agree a home cooked meal would normally be healthier if the portion sizes were the same.

It's harder for people to control the portion sizes though and if the food tastes good it's easy to keep eating before suddenly realising you've polished off a bigger portion than you intended and a meal that should have leftovers is all gone. As with so many other things, it's fine if you have self discipline.

@Anxioys

If I go to a sandwich shop, they make it from scratch for me.

Yes, but the ingredients are highly likely to be processed crap.

Margarine will be,
As will salad cream/mayonnaise,
As will be the bread,
Meat slices will almost certainly be processed from a pack,
"Wet" fillings such as chicken & sweetcorn, or prawn/egg mayonnaise will be processed bought in bulk (there are numerous sandwich filling manufacturers),

Take a look in their waste bins behind the shop and you'll find large plastic containers bought in bulk from food processors/wholesalers, usually with long use by dates meaning lots of added salt/sugar and other preservatives.

You're probably only looking at lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber that will actually be "fresh" and unprocessed.

Obviously, "artisan" style sandwich shops may use more fresh/unprocessed ingredients, but you'll be paying through the nose for them.

That’s great. It’s also what the fitness guy said , consistency is key

All of these campaigns are massively hypocritical. They ban xyz promotion because it is unhealthy but do nothing about alcohol. No sugar promotions allowed but then you walk into the supermarket to be immediately faced with an alcohol promotion. 🤷‍♀️

No - you are teaching them that MacDonalds is the "occasional" food.

High fat foods taste delicious - it is just a fact. But that doesn't mean we need to eat them all the time. If you teach them that high fat/high sugar is "just another food" then the argument is "Well, why can't we have them every day, then?" And if that's all they are, why not have them every day? We all know why, but children don't.

Children (and many adults) need to learn the trade-off between "extra tasty" and "not very good for you" and learn to balance it.

Fat is made out to be a bogey man, and it isn't. Fat is an important part of our diet - it is crucial for nerve conduction (keeps the myelin sheaths which clothe the nerves in good shape) and for the brain. We need it, but not in excess.

I do agree though that refined sugar has no food value whatsoever - indeed is probably negative, and should be kept to a minimum, but there is still no need to cut it out altogether.

Not really when the average person needs between 1500-2000 a day, a third of that in one meal isn't tonnes

We can make cheap unhealthy fast food - why can't we make cheap healthy fast food that people want to eat? Look at the real reason why food is full of salt, sugar and undesirable chemicals. Is it to prolong the shelf life or to get people to eat more? Ban the latter.

This.

We should go back to enjoying vegetables and fruits in season instead expecting them to be available all year round. If shops offered less variety it would bring costs down.

Accept that food goes off and don't buy stuff "just to have in" - then there will be less waste.

Yes - it is more work, especially for women who still in these "enlightened" times get the bulk of caring for the home. - but if that's really the only way we'll be able to reduce the dependance on fast food.

And in practical terms, most women work outside the home these days and don't have the time to prepare every meal from scratch, even if they are very competent cooks.

Surely that depends what else you were eating? I don't see how you can draw that conclusion from any one meal (unless that single meal is over the daily calorie guidelines I suppose).

Do nothing about alcohol, or tobacco - and when the EU food regs end later this year I can promise you that there will be all sorts of filth pumped into our food! American food producers are rubbing their hands at the thought of the British market opening up.

Govt keeps everything that brings in high tax money. Can't blame them in a way - but then they shouldn't be bullying people about what they are eating.

Jamie Oliver's campaigns have resulted in a lot of foods losing their flavour and appeal because sugar has been taken out and replaced with chemicals, which are as bad if not worse for health.

I'd rather consume an unhealthy natural product than an unhealthy unnatural one.

Can’t believe how many people on this thread have fallen for the line (pushed hard by junk food companies for obvious reasons) that exercise is what you need to lose weight/people are fat because they don’t exercise. Multiple studies tracking calorie expenditure with doubly labelled water have shown that when you exercise more, your body just burns fewer calories on other things instead. Exercise is really
good for your health but the calories it burns do not materially contribute to weight loss.

But also if you eat stuff that is designed to make you want to eat it ( junk food ) then you eat more

And junk food had nice profit margins so it's easy to give you a "deal"

A deal that tries to trap you into needing that treat they offer every day

I don't think lots of people have fallen for the line that people are fat because they don't exercise/exercise is what you need to lose weight.

Exercise is good for you & I think it should be subsidised by government as part of a push to reduce obesity but it wouldn't be enough on it's own. It will only be effective in conjunction with a healthy diet.

Well, yes, I do imagine it's quite a lot easier for a government to order retailers to make things more expensive than it is to order them to make them cheaper.

The 2.8kg thing is just a ridiculous soundbite. They must think we're stupid.

Eating better is a completely different issue to the economy. Obesity is a huge problem in the UK, regardless of what happens in the economy.

Having said all that, having a problem with meal deals seems crazy when the government do nothing about processed or fast food. Or alcohol.

I don't think it is the 2-fors and meal deals that are the issue per se, I think it's other complex factors in society. Stress and lack of sleep being two important ones. Time and energy costs and lack of facilities to cook being 3 more

Yep.

Would a fat tax even work? I mean petrol has gone up and up, but the roads are still rammed. It’s to do with time, both people working, and having too much to do. And some people just hate cooking ( myself included)

Taxes on "bad" things has been proved not to work, other than revenue generation.

People still buy tobacco/cigarettes, they still buy petrol, they still buy alcohol, they still buy sugary soft drinks.

It's basically just another tax on people who make poor decisions in life for whatever reason.

A lot of healthier food options are cheaper than fast food, but people still buy calorie/fat laden takeaways such as fish & chips, burgers, etc.

Just been to our local supermarket and their diet coke cans are exactly the same price as the full sugar ones! The sugar tax worked well didn't it!!!!!

Yep.

Besides, obesity has long been linked with poverty. We all know it's cheaper to cook from scratch using fresh ingredients, but that takes time, energy and skill, which you're not so likely to have if you're on the breadline. If your life is miserable and you are impoverished, you're going to look for small pleasures and the idea that you could buy a mansion if you saved the money from sweeties is not really going to resonate with you. I'm sure someone must have given that Orwell quote by now but in case not, here it is.

diet coke cans are exactly the same price as the full sugar ones

Diet coke tastes like muck. And artificial sweeteners are no better for you than sugar.

We consume about 4 cans a month amog the three of us - we want the stuff that tastes nice!