In the UK, (and hopefully in much of the civilised world) there's a law that stops children from being abused by people they trust. Scout leaders, for example, have to be checked and vetted before they can do their job. As do teachers and classroom assistants. If a physical relationship does occur between a minor and somebody in authority, then (if I understand it correctly) the penalty handed down by the judge is always far more severe. (Unless the accused is a Free Mason, of course. But let's not go there just yet.)
So, that's just how it works. Authority figures have power over us. that's what being an authority figure means. And it's a double edged sword. We're happy to let these role models enjoy their time in the sun, as long as their standards of behaviour are far higher than we set ourselves. One Premiership soccer player swears on a pitch and suddenly Coca Cola don't want to sponsor him any more. It isn't good to be associated with harsh language. (Not that they have any problem with being associated with union blocking, environmental damage and water table depletion, of course). Similarly, a long line of soccer fans will quite happily line up to boo and hiss at another player because he's... well, a player. But how many of those fans have never risked a quick fumble on the back seat of their Mondeo while the old lady's been busy?
Sometimes we get cross about blatant abuses of power. Such as when Carol Vordermann (famous in the UK for being a mathematical genius but without the bad teeth and acne) chose to advertise unsecured loans at a rate that would make even the bank of Portugal raise an eyebrow. Or when Bono starts going on and on and on and on about ... well, everything, really.
We don't mind people living the celebrity lifestyle. In fact , we want certain people to do so so that we can enjoy the vicarious thrill of it all, but as soon as their behaviour becomes anything less than saintly, our "should know better" glands secrete bile and we all turn into paragons of righteous anger.
So you can imagine that Doctors are a very special breed indeed. these are the people we trust. And they have white coats to prove it. We trust them to make us better. We even trust them to make decisions on what medication our children take. Seriously, I can't think of any single person I'd take that sort of life and death advice from. Except anyone in a white coat.
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| A busy day at the University. |
Doctors are clever, right? They study hard, they know their stuff. Eight years to qualify, long hours. We know the drill. But that doesn't mean they can't be bought. Or at least hired from time to time. Remember our friend Dr Susan Jebb, who enjoys a media-friendly relationship with the Flour Advisory Bureau? (Click here to see my original post on this) Well, It seems that there are some out there who really don't worry about trivial things like the consequences of making misleading claims to the media, as they get a decent bank balance out of it. And if a few kids get a bit fatter in the process... Well, hey. It was going to happen anyway, right? It's just a little PR. And, well.... They're only kids.
Let's start with a baseline assumption. I hope you're with me on this: It's not healthy to give sweets and sugar to kids. That's it. I'm not saying you shouldn't. I'm not saying you should never give candy to kids. (I bought both mine 100g of gummy bears today) I'm just saying you should never try to kid yourself on that you're doing it for the good of their health.
The next part might shock you a bit. Fruit juice isn't good for kids either. It might be "bursting with sunshine goodness", but it's also packed full of sugars, as well as the fact that it will do nasty things to your acid balance. Drink a couple of glasses of it with your breakfast Frosties and you've got a a sugar bomb which your body metabolism can only regulate by forcing all that sugar into your fat cells to get it out of your blood. It's a bit like hiding dirty laundry under the bed when your mother calls round unexpectedly- It might not be the best way of dealing with it, but it's quick. This is why most commercial diets of any kind have such a downer on fruit juice. You really may as well sit and enjoy a bag of sherbet for all the good it will do you.
So - Related articles, then?
Well, for starters, there's a press release on this very medical looking page which tells us that people who eat sweets tend to have less risk of cardiovascular disease, a lower BMI, less waste circumference and generally tend to be happier people. This little gem is brought to us, courtesy of the good Doctor Carol O'Neil. And funded by the those awfully impartial scientists at the National Confectioners Association. (USA)
Can we just inject a little sanity? It's very cleverly worded, but it's still a devious and manipulative piece of cynical marketing in which a doctor has been wheeled in to add credibility to an argument which couldn't hold water if you coated it with sealing wax and plastic sheeting It's very simple, folks: People who are thinner tend to eat more sweets because they aren't worried about their weight and on a diet. They tend to have a decreased risk of a heart attack, or a stroke, because they are thinner. That's also why they tend to be happier: because they're slim enough to enjoy sweeties, while their obese counterparts are starving themselves on Slimfast shakes, hating themselves, and generally feeling like shit.
In a further related article, you can read here that our good friend Dr Carol O'Neil is keen to let us know all about the fantastic benefits that fruit juice has for our kids. It's comforting to know that in this age of epidemic child obesity, there are still people who think we should be training our children to enjoy a daily sugar fix from a very young age. How fortunate for us that the Juice Products Association was able to add their funding to this highly important community work. And that the Doctor was kind enough to spread the word with interviews here, and here, and here, and here, and... etc. Gosh! With so much media work tied to this research contract, you'd almost think the Juice Producer's Association had something to gain from all the publicity.
Seriously though. What have I got against good old fruit juice? Well... click here. In a 100ml serving (that's 3.38 US Fluid oz) of a best selling brand of pure orange juice, there is 22g of sugar. that's what, about four or five teaspoons full? If your kids put that much sugar in their tea every morning, would you smile and nod?
Well, compared to the amount of sugar in a bowl of Frosties, for example, orange juice doesn't do too badly. It's only 1/5th sugar, where as Fosties is 1/3rd sugar. (Which means for every 100g serving you'll get 30g (six teaspoons) of sugar. click here for source ) But that doesn't stop Doctor O'Neil hitting the PR trail again, this time in research paid for by Kellogs, to state that kids really will get a better start to the day with sugary cereal than any other form of breakfast.
To be fair, the report did warn of the dangers of skipping breakfast - which is a major issue for many kids in deprived areas. But seriously, it wouldn't hurt her to mention that there are better starts to the day for our little darlings than hyperglycemia.
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