Posted 16 May 2020
PLATE TECTONICS
What’s on your plate today?
I have previously mentioned cardiologist Dr Assem Malhotra and his forthright views on dietary change to improve the health of the nation. The clip attached to this post is Dr Malhotra responding to Boris’ promise to tackle obesity once the pandemic is over. A great watch.
Let me pick-over some of the key points Dr Malhotra makes.
Whilst it is of huge concern that over 60 per cent of the UK adult population are overweight or obese, of greater concern is the poor metabolic health of the nation. It is estimated that only one third of adults of normal BMI (that is neither overweight nor underweight) are metabolically healthy. Just one third. And the consequences of that metabolic ill-health – type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardio vascular disease, cancer and dementia – are the co-morbidities proving so deadly in COVID19 infections.
All of these co-morbidities are associated with excess fat. But not all people with excess fat are visibly fat. Fat can be deep and internal, surrounding your vital organs. You could be what we call TOFI: Thin on the outside and fat on the inside. If this is taken into account, the estimate of the UK population that have ‘excess fat’ is probably nearer 80 per cent.
Beware those who might be deemed “otherwise healthy”. “I’m not fat” is not a place of assured health!
Dr Malhotra is quite clear where much of the blame lies: The dietary guidelines issued by the Government and accessed via websites such as the NHS “Eat Well Guide”. You can see why – there are junk and processed foods in this guide! And once you realise that junk and fast food companies sit on the panel that creates the guide, financial interest seemingly takes precedence over health of the nation.
Corporate backing goes beyond and deeper. 75 per cent of all food purchased in hospitals is not healthy. What chance do NHS staff and patients have of eating well with that statistic?
And yet it can be so easy. The markers of poor metabolic health can be reversed in individuals within weeks of appropriate dietary change. Regulatory changes could bring shifts in the population within a few years. It is estimated that up to three-quarters of all health care spending is in response to ill-health caused by poor dietary and lifestyle choices. Fix the food system and you will fix the health care system.
Protecting the NHS from any future viral pandemics could be down to what you put on your plate.
To see my presentations on how to make the changes, go to: http://www.cuttingcarbs.co.uk/survival-of-the-fattest/