Junk food or the unhealthy foods are associated with multiple disease process from diabetes, hypertension, heart diseases and cancers.
If smoking can be associated with such labels, then why not these food.
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Regards
The best solution is the special labeling / labeling of this kind of food through legislation.
Absolutely. If they do it for cigarettes, why nt for unhealthy food? This shouldn't even be an issue. It should be done, period. Cheers.
Dear brother, Junk foods and chemical drinks are sold through advertisement and trillions od dollars are invested and profited everyday in that business in the globe.
If any body, even any Govt. want to control it, they may be removed from power.
Do not under estimate the 'POWER' of corporates. Actually they decide all the choices of almost every persons of the world!
Its a trap, and self education is the only way to stay outside this trap.
Tags and visual graphic warnings may be applied for packed, canned foods to warn about health hazards, but what about the foods cooked instantly in restaurants, stored food, street foods etc.? What about the bio-accumulation of pesticides and chemical fertilizers in raw vegetables, rice, wheat and pulses? Aren’t these too increase the risk of health hazards? Should we tag those too? We can’t avoid consuming such foods inspite of knowing that it will cause harm to health, just because of today’s stressful and hectic lifestyle. Every packet of cigarettes comes with the statutory warning that “Smoking kills” and with graphic warning of health risks but the question is “Has smoking decreased significantly among people in last few decades?” The answer is a big “NO”. So, self education and realization may help perhaps.
Thanks.
The best solution is the special labeling / labeling of this kind of food through legislation.
Define unhealthy food ...
I have patients (hypertension, heart failure, liver disease) that I have to recommend salt reduction and patients (salt wasting nephropathy, Bartter syndrome, autonomic dysregulation) that I have to recommend an increased salt intake. Some patients do need a protein rich diet whilst many need a restriction. Red wine in moderation as well as beans, lentils, nuts are part of the healthy Mediterranean diet whilst these obviously have to be avoided in patients with gout/hyperuricaemia. Water intoxication will harm, may even kill you. You can become overweight by eating too much non junk food.
Unhealthy diet is easier to define when you think about amounts of individual nutrients/food groups.
Rather then warnings on individual foods - you would have to have a warning on every item as everything will potentially harm you - I think, what we do need is better education about healthy behaviour. There is an industry driven culture that excess is good. The even bigger quadruple burger with the double fries. The XXL bottle of sugary drink ... And there is the (commercially driven?) idea that food preparation is difficult or time consuming hence people do increasingly rely on convenience foods, ready meals, take outs with negative consequences on personal health (and finances) whilst loosing out on a basic life skill ...
Dear Immo Weichert
Thanks for your nice comments. True. Apart from normal people (not yet diagnosed as diseased) the patients as you mentioned salt restriction or DASH diets addition for hypertensives, i feel like every food we take at least the health hazards and must also be tagged.
Education, as a primary prevention stands baseline and i have seen my kid's book containing some sort of such information, but not found that useful once they ONLY prefer junk.
Labeling food, taxing such food more than simple salad type food will probably do more good than harm.
Anyway obesity is here to become a plague for the our generations and then generations to come. Its going to be one of the biggest curses of all times, being termed as "mother of all disease".
Seriously the problem has to be taken on war footing or else we need cardiac units in every street, stents, CABG and lot more to spend in tertiary care.
My suggestion.
Regards
"Fat tax" would be interesting. I wonder how many will agree to that?
But still a worthwhile option
Regards
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