The Daily Mirror is running a story on the obesity crisis in the UK. According to NHS data, 22.6% of 4 and 5 year-olds in the UK are overweight or obese, and it seems that nursery bosses and staff want to be allowed to ban all junk food and sweets from lunch boxes.
I remember when Jamie Oliver’s healthy school dinners campaign was all over the news, Schools tried to ban junk food in school dinners, and parents turned up at the school gates pushing fish and chips and burgers through the iron railings for their kids to eat.
This news is for vegetarians and meat eaters, so they might celebrate – or not: Printed Meat.
According to The Guardian, printed meat could become a reality in 2020, as Israeli and Spanish firms serve up realistic printed steaks and chicken thighs produced from plant protein. They speculate that the printers are likely to be available to buy within a few years, so that consumers can produce their own at home.
Sad news for pain sufferers: according to The Daily Telegraph, NICE (the National Institute for Health Care and Excellence) has ruled that cannabis is not effective enough against chronic pain for it to be recommended on the NHS.
However, there is some good news. In the same newspaper there is a story that research has found virtual reality could offer effective pain relief. A recent study found that VR may play a role in disrupting pain pathways to the brain.
I can attest to this. However, it is not a permanent cure, just temporary relief. So, if you think I spend all that time in VR for the Network, think again.
In Stoneywood, Scotland, according to the Press and Journal newspaper, a chihuahua was attacked in her own back garden by a bird of prey. The owner managed to fight the bird off, and happily the one-year-old pup, who was left with bruises where the large bird had attempted to sink its talons in, is expected to make a full recovery. She will probably keep one eye on the sky in future.
If you Google “news bird attacks on dogs” you will discover this kind of thing is not that rare.
And finally, according to the Daily Mail, Harrods is getting into the Christmas spirit – well the Grinch / Scrooge part of it. They are insisting that anyone who wants to visit Santa in their traditional grotto will have to have spent over £2,000.00. in their store. Even then they will have to pay £20.00 for a ticket.
After an outcry on social media, Harrods has now agreed to give 160 lower-spending (not lower-income) families the chance to visit the grotto, but don’t bother rushing to flash the cash – all tickets to the grotto have already been sold. Because, let’s face it, people can’t simply say, this is wrong, we will go to a different grotto this year, or give the money to charity. They go, “Oh this is so exclusive, I must take Tarquin and Tinkerbell.”
Reference List:
- The Daily Mirror
- The Guardian
- The Daily Mail
- The Daily Telegraph
- The Press and Journal