The Fat Tax

A 'Fat Tax' on junk food?

Sounds like a good idea - until you actually read the article and think about what it may really mean. Over many years the idea has been propagandized to the general public that the problem in the diet is fat. Along with this came a heavy dose of anxiety and fear that somehow fat in the diet made you fat, caused heart disease, high blood pressure and everything bad. Cholesterol, a natural fatty substance which the body produces in abundance, in fact the most abundant single substance in the body, was pointed out as being particularly bad, and almost everybody was in need of drug therapy for it.

The health issues around fat are very complex to a degree, but are simplified once we include whole natural foods in the diet in the proper amounts. When we do that then the fat balance in the body is corrected and health is restored.

But most people don't know that. And whole natural foods are not all that easy to find if you don't know where to look. But refined food products loaded down with all the wrong fats, especially the artificial ones, and some of the right ones too, but in the wrong ratios.

So now into this confused mess comes the idea of a 'Fat Tax' which would penalize people for consuming foods rich in 'fat' regardless of whether the food itself is healthy or not. From this moronic point of view there would be no difference between the wonderfully healthy fat ratios in raw whole milk and the completely artificially concocted fats in a highly refined processed food product such as Snack Wells.

'Fat tax' could be levied on junk food
A "fat tax" could be levied on junk food and sugary drinks in a bid to reduce obesity and reduce the deficit.

The Food Standards Agency is planning to consult on whether taxing such foods would encourage people to make healthier choices.
In much the same way as tax is applied to alcohol and tobacco the most processed food are likely to be targeted.

It is possible however that 17.5 per cent tax could be levied on high fat food such as butter and cheese.
All food is currently exempt from VAT.
The FSA fears that the nations excessive consumption of saturated fat is leading to increased numbers of deaths through clogged arteries and heart disease.
The scheme has met with opposition from consumer groups.
Julian Hunt, of the Food and Drink Federation told the Daily Mail: "It may be a perfectly sensible issue to debate but such a regressive policy would nothing more than create lighter wallets for consumers."
However some research has claimed a fat tax could save up to 3,000 lives per year.
Last year the British Medical Association only narrowly voted against putting a fat tax on chocolate.
However, research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies warned that any fat tax would have a negative affect on poorer families and have a greater impact on their food budget than on richer families.

Man Shall Not Live By Bread Alone...

Can a person live on breath alone? That would seem to defy common sense and common science. But here is a man who claims he hasn't had a meal in 70 years! Could this be true? We may soon have a clue. He is in a high tech medical facility to be studied to see if he can survive on nothing.
Caution: don't try this at home!
Enjoy. Learn. Share.

Man claims to have had no food or drink for 70 years

Indian military scientists are studying an 82-year-old who claims he has not had any food or drink for 70 years.

By Dean Nelson in New Delhi
Published: 11:02PM BST 28 Apr 2010

Indian patient Prahlad Jani (Mataji), who claims he has survived without food and water for more than seven decades Photo: AFP

Prahlad Jani is being held in isolation in a hospital in Ahmedabad, Gurjarat, where he is being closely monitored by India's defence research organization, who believe he may have a genuine quality which could help save lives.

He has now spent six days without food or water under strict observation and doctors say his body has not yet shown any adverse effects from hunger or dehydration.

Related Articles

• Wine, veg and little meat 'a recipe for long life'

• Red wine ingredient is a 'wonderdrug'

• Beer goggles idea is a myth, claim scientists

• Indian scientists tasked with creating a curry fit for orbit

• Marinating steak in beer or wine 'reduces cancer chemicals'

• Lung tumours 'could grow faster' due to processed food

Mr Jani, who claims to have left home aged seven and lived as a wandering sadhu or holy man in Rajasthan, is regarded as a 'breatharian' who can live on a 'spiritual life-force' alone. He believes he is sustained by a goddess who pours an 'elixir' through a hole in his palate. His claims have been supported by an Indian doctor who specializes in studies of people who claim supernatural abilities, but he has also been dismissed by others as a "village fraud."

India's Defence Research Development Organisation, whose scientists develop drone aircraft, intercontinental ballistic missiles and new types of bombs. They believe Mr Prahlad could teach them to help soldiers survive longer without food, or disaster victims to hang on until help arrives.

"If his claims are verified, it will be a breakthrough in medical science," said Dr G Ilavazhagan, director of the Defence Institute of Physiology & Allied Sciences.

"We will be able to help save human lives during natural disasters, high altitude, sea journeys and other natural and human extremities. We can educate people about the survival techniques in adverse conditions with little food and water or nothing at all."

So far, Mr Prahlad appears to be standing up to scrutiny. He has not eaten or drunk any fluids in six days, and similarly has not passed urine or a stool in that time. He remains fit and healthy and shows no sign of lethargy. Doctors will continue observing him for 15 days in which time they would expect to see some muscle wastage, serious dehydration, weight loss,and fatigue followed by organ failure.

It is common in India for Jains and Hindus to fast, sometimes for up to eight days, without any adverse affects, as part of their religious worship. Most humans cannot survive without food for 50 days. The longest hunger strike recorded is 74 days.

According to Dr Sudhir Shah, who examined him in 2003, he went without food or water for ten days in which urine appeared to be reabsorbed by his body after forming in his bladder. Doubts were expressed about his claim after his weight fell slightly at the end of the trial.