Health warnings on alcohol bottles should be compulsory – MPs

[Shambles]

Alternatively, get people and companies who can afford to avoid tax pay some for a change.

 

[BecomingJulie]

They need to leave smokers and drinkers alone. Put a tax on fat kids.

Or they could, you know, leave the fat people alone with the smokers and the drinkers? Don't add to those already making me feel like a freak. Fourteen is not a "plus size".

(Yeah, and I know you only meant people fatter than me. Trouble is, you probably already said the same thing to someone thinner than me.)

 

[Shambles]

Saw the fattest kid I ever did see t'other week. Must've been ~6-7 or thereabouts. Was quite literally as wide as he was tall and quite considerably larger around the middle than I am as a somewhat portly middle-aged man. I'm not one for thinking it's really anybody else's bizniz for the most part but blimey do they grow 'em big these days. I was a fat kid at school. My gut at its schoolboy largest would barely compare to one of his thighs. And yes, he was munching on a big bag of sweets of some kind - as were the rest of his not quite (but not far off) equally sizable siblings and parents. Should they be taxed by the inch? Nope. Could probably do with some better education and information on diet though - they used to do that at school before they cut funding for it.

 

[LearntYoung]

I do think that if tobacco warnings are mandatory, there should be some for alcohol too.
The only problem is: It shits on the economy. Big time!
Especially for a country like the Netherlands, where the government is already shitting on the economy, doing this would probably be kind of neutral at first, but as soon as other countries follow up, it could become fatal.
We brew Heineken, Amstel, Alfa and maybe other beers that are sold in other country and we earn a lot of our national income from export.
When the export of alcohol drops to an all time low, we'll feel that significantly.
So I'm going to be selfish and say:

Sure! Raise awareness and make people know that alcohol too is a drug and causes serious health problems, just like any other drug can!
But only in the Netherlands. Other countries should stay ignorant.

 

[class-a-team]

Or they could, you know, leave the fat people alone with the smokers and the drinkers? Don't add to those already making me feel like a freak. Fourteen is not a "plus size".

(Yeah, and I know you only meant people fatter than me. Trouble is, you probably already said the same thing to someone thinner than me.)

It was only a joke, albeit not a very good one.

I would never consider size 14 to be overweight, and I think it's unfair of you to accuse me of doing so. I think size fourteen is the average size now, or maybe the most common size actually, and I share your sentiment that it is ridiculous to call a fourteen (or sixteen) 'plus size.'

 

[class-a-team]

Saw the fattest kid I ever did see t'other week. Must've been ~6-7 or thereabouts. Was quite literally as wide as he was tall and quite considerably larger around the middle than I am as a somewhat portly middle-aged man. I'm not one for thinking it's really anybody else's bizniz for the most part but blimey do they grow 'em big these days. I was a fat kid at school. My gut at its schoolboy largest would barely compare to one of his thighs. And yes, he was munching on a big bag of sweets of some kind - as were the rest of his not quite (but not far off) equally sizable siblings and parents. Should they be taxed by the inch? Nope. Could probably do with some better education and information on diet though - they used to do that at school before they cut funding for it.

Again I didn't mean literally put a tax on fat kids. Though there is no excuse for a child that age to be so overweight. It is a form of neglect, plain and simple.

My point is that obesity and poor diet is a huge health problem now and should be treated as such. I don't understand why they can't put health warnings on the packaging of processed foods and foods high in sugar as they do with cigarettes. I am a trifle annoyed by the fact that the price of cigarettes is going up with every budget and that it is nearing €10 a pack in Ireland now. Granted, they are desperately unhealthy but being overweight or obese is also highly likely to cause a whole range of health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke and has been linked to various cancers.

I think people really underestimate the problems associated with excessive sugar consumption in particular. On the subject of sugar, I found this article really interesting: http://arch1design.com/blog/2009/05/why-not-put-heroin-in-our-cornflakes/

Anyway, I'm not suggesting that taxes or health warnings are the way to go, but I do think that our government's (and indeed your government's) anti-smoking and anti-drinking crusades are excessive, that they are neglecting the problem of obesity and that better education on the issues would probably be more effective.

 

[LearntYoung]

To give you some comfort, I thought your post was funny, class-a-team

 

[Shambles]

I think part of the problem with the "bad food" thing is that such things tend to be more the case at the cheaper end of the grocery spectrum. Fat, salt and sugar are cheap and tend to be used to pad out (or just give a bit of flavour to) cheap products with precious little else in 'em. Obviously there are always cheap options that are perfectly healthy and nutritious but I do think we've lost a generation or two to junk food since they stopped teaching home economics at school. Not the only cause I'm sure but at least once upon a time everybody who attended school was taught basic cookery skills and nutritional information. When people think they can't cook they will likely just end up with frozen stuff and microwave meals cos even the most mongoed of mongos can put a thing on a tray and heat it up. Unfortunately those people who missed out on said basic cookery skills at school and didn't get them at home for whatever reason are probably quite likely to eat crap themselves and would now mostly have children who would presumably be fed similarly. Is my pet theory anyway.

But on the point of labelling and warnings, I don't see why foodstuffs - at the more extreme end of wrongness anyway - wouldn't also fit with health warnings for other things that are horrible for you. Like booze, it's entirely possible to only use such products in moderation where it's no problem, but lack of moderation is certainly as bad a health choice as excessive drinking. I do think there should really be better ways of going about things with food as it's not optional cos we all have to eat something and what those somethings are could be a better informed choice for sure. We all know some foods are not good to go mad for but there's plenty that sneak it in under the radar which I don't doubt catch people unawares.

 

[class-a-team]

"Put a tax on fat kids."

I do wonder how anyone thought I was being serious.

 

[Shambles]

I was mainly using it as an excuse to mention that really rather extraordinarily fat kid I saw to be honest. Really was quite extraordinarily fat.

 

[BecomingJulie]

It was only a joke, albeit not a very good one.

I would never consider size 14 to be overweight, and I think it's unfair of you to accuse me of doing so. I think size fourteen is the average size now, or maybe the most common size actually, and I share your sentiment that it is ridiculous to call a fourteen (or sixteen) 'plus size.'

Apology accepted, and one offered in return. I've been feeling a bit sensitive just lately, is all.

Right now, operation "only one care in the whole world" is proceeding nicely

Anyway, if we are going to have pictures of diseased livers on alcohol bottles to go with the pictures of diseased lungs on cigarette packets, we really should have pictures of festering landfill sites on packets of disposable nappies.

 

[LearntYoung]

Try out operation: Not giving a single fuck.
I LOVE IT

 

[Hangover]

Is it that time of the month? ;p

 

[class-a-team]

Apology accepted, and one offered in return. I've been feeling a bit sensitive just lately, is all.

Right now, operation "only one care in the whole world" is proceeding nicely

Anyway, if we are going to have pictures of diseased livers on alcohol bottles to go with the pictures of diseased lungs on cigarette packets, we really should have pictures of festering landfill sites on packets of disposable nappies.

Ah I understand! And glad to hear it

Yeah you're right. I suppose it could go a bit overboard!

 

[ColtDan]

On the subject of tax, massive companies like Amazon need taxing the shit out of, i recall reading about them making massive amounts of money and paying minimal amounts, avoidance loop holes and whatever

"Shoppers have been urged to boycott Amazon's British business after it paid just £4.2m in tax last year, despite selling goods worth £4.3bn"

 

[JohnnyVodka]

Either there should be health warnings on ALL products associated with major health issues or there should be no warnings. Why should smokers be targeted with these and not drinkers or those who practically hang out in Maccy D's?

 

[parttime crackhead]

On the subject of tax, massive companies like Amazon need taxing the shit out of, i recall reading about them making massive amounts of money and paying minimal amounts, avoidance loop holes and whatever

"Shoppers have been urged to boycott Amazon's British business after it paid just £4.2m in tax last year, despite selling goods worth £4.3bn"

They didn't make profits of £4.3bn though. They undoubtedly do some shady stuff with their tax but they don't really make much profit (relative to their turnover) which is why the tax bill is so low.

 

[Limpet_Chicken]

Yeah, whilst I mainly use an e-cig now, which is MUCH cheaper (just don't use those glycerine-based liquids, I've found them to produce caustic, choking vapor of a really intolerable nature, I strongly suspect its acrolein being formed via dehydration of the glycerine, as PG or PEG based refills don't do this), according to my old man who uses one himself, still buys fags for my mom, who by now is too far demented to change, and nearly a tenner a pack (for 20 embassy) now.

According to a local shopkeeper, before they went out of business, they only made 2p on every pack, with 4 pence going to the tobacco grower, the rest gets taken in the greediest tax I have ever heard of.