What do you think of this story in the Evening Standard this evening?
We all tell the odd lie. I maintain, for example, that I have no idea how the teapot in my kitchen lost its handle. And when I missed my yoga class last week it was – of course – because I was feeling unwell.
Since we’re taking confession, hands up if you’ve ever told this one: “I deserve this large slice of chocolate cake because I went for a run yesterday.” How about: “I never eat junk food. I have a very balanced diet”? Ooh, you big fat liar!
The truth is, according to a recent poll, that women tell almost 500 lies every year about what they eat, with the top fib being, “It was only a small portion.”Meanwhile, the overweight among us are either oblivious or won’t admit to being fat. Despite an obesity rate among UK adults of 24 per cent, only six per cent of men and women identify themselves as obese.
“There is a great deal of denial – unwitting and deliberate – surrounding obesity and food reporting,” says Professor David Haslam of the National Obesity Forum. “Part of the problem is that adults and children compare themselves with their peers who are fat, so they don’t see anything out of the ordinary.”
Read full story.
