Temperama

Diet, Custom & Income

See this orange thing here on the left? It's exactly what it says on the caption. People in Britain know this. They're also geographically and economically well able to purchase quantities of same for inclusion in their diets, along with other fresh vegetables and also fruits. Significantly, this is as true for low-earners as for any every other kind, according to the Food Standards Agency in their recent report. It is also true that low earners are no more likely to fail to consume healthy amounts of fresh fruit and veg than anyone else. However, the same survey also discovered that people on low incomes smoke more, drink more, take less exercise and consume more soft drinks, whole milk and sugar. What exactly does all this tell us? I've yet to read the full report, but my tentative conclusion is that adopting good habits is hard for everyone but giving up harmful ones is harder when your whole life is harder too.

The Johnson Review

The Telegraph on Alan Johnson's health service review:

"In truth, we have a pretty clear idea of what ails the health service. There is the sheer management incompetence that led to the fiasco in junior hospital training, and the wider failure to match manpower to needs. There is the tyranny of the target culture, which can subvert clinical judgment. And there is the NHS's monolithic structure, which cries out to be broken up into manageable and accountable local units. Mr Johnson should be tackling these issues with urgency, not kicking them into the long grass."

More here. And listen again (8.10) to Johnson defending the review on this morning's Today programme.