Sugar
is apparently the latest target for the food Nazis. There were calls last week
for additional tax on sugary pop. At first,
I thought that’s not a bad idea. I have
met young people in the past totally addicted to a well-known brown fizzy drink
and symptoms included obesity, depression and low self esteem. But then I thought, hang on a sec. Just because that person got fed too much pop
by his well-meaning but not well-informed parents, does that mean the rest of
us that want an occasional caffeine boost in a sugar-based drink should also
pay more? I also think it’s quite
expensive enough for coloured water. In some settings such as posh pubs and cinemas,
it costs the equivalent of a pint of beer. Surely it’s better to make sure
people have the facts so they can make intelligent choices rather than saying ‘that’s
bad for you so we’re going to make it really expensive’. And of course the
extra money would go to the government, which would more likely fund obese Tories
than public health and education. As with
all indirect taxes, this hits the less well-off more of course.
At
the weekend the madness extended to all products containing sugar, including
sugar itself. As if the poor beleaguered shopper doesn’t have enough to worry
about with the horse meat scandal. Yes, we know food producers put sugar in food
to make it taste nicer and it’s our choice whether we buy it or not. One loony commentator actually blamed sugar
alone for all the obesity problems we face.
Nothing to do with eating too much or not moving enough or not having a
balance diet or anything else. No! Just sugar!
Okay,
I realise that any nutritionist will tell you that intrinsically sugar has no nutritional
value whatsoever. But that’s not why we
eat it. Without sounding too
self-righteous I am not a massive consumer of processed food products (because
I know they put loads of unknown stuff in and I really do prefer freshly made
food given the choice) but I do eat things like shop-bought yogurt, muesli and
fruit juice knowing full well there is sugar in them and I will also confess to
the occasional pork pie or lamb grill (no horse – I checked). But if I want the actual taste of sugar I
WILL DAMN WELL HAVE SUGAR!
Again,
I am not a massive consumer and may only indulge a few times a week but a life totally without any cake, sweets, biscuits
and especially chocolates would suck. Just because some people can’t have a packet
of biscuits in the house without immediately scoffing the lot, why should I pay
more? We eat sweet things because they
taste nice! Now all of a sudden sugar is
worse than fat or carbohydrate because it’s not a ‘proper food’. That may technically be true but when consciously
trying to lose weight in the past, I found that if I cut out sugar completely it
was very hard. Some people may be happy
on a bland diet of rice cakes and carrots but I for one am not. What is the point of living if you can’t have
the odd bit of sugar? I also became an
expert at calorie counting and know that eating a couple of sweets or chocolates
for example, is fewer calories than a piece of pie or cake (even the diet
stuff) and I felt like I’d had something sweet and that was enough to satisfy me. If sugar is so addictive how come we still
have chocolates in boxes in our house from Christmas? Comparing it to nicotine or
other drugs is ridiculous. Did anyone
actually ever die directly of a sugar overdose?
And if that is true, then why was nicotine not banned centuries
ago? Because it raises too much revenue
for the government of course. And
another thing - if sugar alone is responsible for all the fat problems in
society, wouldn’t we all be seriously overweight rather than just a third of
us?
As
mentioned I am especially partial to chocolates (but manage to exercise
self-restraint and not scoff them continuously - sic) and the odd bit of cake.
I do occasionally like actual sweets but normally only eat them on holiday (it’s
essential when flying I find, to suck on a boiled sweet to help with the drop
in air pressure) and when I am feeling poorly.
I actually think that sugar can be good for you when you are unwell. I have done a bit of research on this (well,
5 mins on Google) and can find no conclusive proof to back up my view. Some call white refined sugar ‘white death’ whilst
conceding that sugar in some forms including honey, does have anti-viral and
ant-bacterial properties. Believe what
you will, but don’t impose those views on me.
My
mantra as always is: ‘Nothing is intrinsically bad for you, but all things in
moderation’.
Get
off my sugar you Fascists!
