Brexit – an opportunity to change our habits?
Day 18 post Brexit.
What does the road ahead look like? As a Belgian citizen living in the UK what is going to happen to me? I love England, I love UK and I adore London for its beautiful cosmopolitan culture. I have found in England what I craved for during my childhood: a sense of adventure, a fantastical place where people and ideas meet every day.
Let me get straight to the point: I have loved the variety of ingredients and cuisines available here. Not only in London, but in fact everywhere in the UK I visit I find new flavours and meet new people who have travelled from afar to be here. Everybody being so welcoming, and helping me to feel at home. I will always be grateful to my adopted country. However, there is one thing that has shocked me about this place, and I feel I have to protest. Some eating habits have bewildered me despite all my willingness to adapt to British customs and values.
Having spoken with French, Italians, and other Belgians living in London, they all feel the same. If you also agree with me, please let me know. Eating while walking to work, children having crisps at 8am on the way to school, skipping lunch because you had too many pints at the pub, kids eating nursery food at 5pm whilst parents eat much later and last but not least, an abundance of processed food. And with such abundance comes such waste and packaging going to the bin, mostly without being recycled. Where is the sophisticated country I have fallen in love with amongst all this.
For years I have been advising my clients to respect the food and also respect their body! And now we have Brexit, and all the insecurity surrounding it. Are we going to be left with just Baked Beans or other imported foods from US. Have you listened recently to ‘Start of the Week Food: From Bread Riots to Obesity with Andrew Marr?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07h69n9. In the show they talk about rations, and the years following WWII, which may well have been tough, but people were not as unhealthy then as they are now. Why were people just after the war better off than we are now, where there is such an abundance of food? Many during this time tried to supplement their rations with homegrown vegetables from allotments {which were not rationed}. Food was respected as a healthy weapon. One of my main message as a nutritionist is to vary your ingredients to make sure your body gets all the nutrients it needs. So what now if certain food prices rise? Most people don’t have or don’t want to take the time to grow their own food. Is healthy food going to be scarce or more expensive? Will the food industry simply produce even more cheap convenience food and ready-made meals? Couldn’t we take the Japanese model as an example and try to be stronger through healthy habits? After the war, the Japanese army was weaker than the others so the government intervened to improve the population’s diet by introducing new healthy ingredients from other cultures. And it improved their health to the point that Japan is now one of the world healthiest populations.
I have been trying to help people with their eating, and I feel really sad to see young children having gastric bands fitted because there are poorly fed, or NHS staff forced to take leave because of an injured back from helping obese patients from their beds. Brexit, as disappointing as it may be, has given us some opportunities, now is an opportunity to react and to get healthier. Know what you are eating and in doubt have unprocessed foods and wholefood. There are plenty of tips out there, available from places such as bbcgoodfood.com and Jamie Oliver’s works. I have just borrowed ‘Economy Gastronomy’ by Allegra McEvedy.
Healthier recipes to follow and please think about improving your eating habits and getting stronger.