While a 20% sugar tax and cutting buy-one-get-one-free deals are part of Public Health England’s ‘key actions’ to tackle people’s addiction to sugar, it appears David Cameron is not in favour. 
The long-awaited report from Public Health England (PHE) says the nation is eating too much sugar and this is leading to health problems and obesity. The report also called for less marketing aimed at children in-store, on TV and online.
People get between 12 and 15% of their energy from sugar, but official recommendations say it should be less than 5%. The report says achieving those levels could save the NHS £500m a year, but admitted no single measure would be effective, the BBC reported.
The report also attacked price promotions that distort people’s shopping baskets – 40% of money spent on food and drink was on products on offer.
PHE concluded 6% of total sugar consumption could be prevented if promotions on higher sugar products were banned.
Speaking to MPs on Tuesday, Dr Alison Tedstone from PHE said: “We do see there is a role for a fiscal approach in reducing sugary drink consumption. The higher the tax increase the greater the effect.”
There were also calls from the TV chef Jamie Oliver for ministers to introduce a tax on fizzy drinks saying it was the ‘single most important’ change that could be made.
But the Food and Drink Federation’s director general, Ian Wright, said: “We do not agree that the international evidence supports the introduction of a sugar tax and for this reason would oppose such a move.”
However, he said the industry was ‘determined’ to help tackle childhood obesity and had already ‘removed millions of calories from the food chain’ by changing ingredients and pack sizes.
Controlling what people eat is one way to look at beating obesity and contributing to the nation’s overall health. But diets are often fads and do not last. Hypnotherapy, on the other hand, can permanently change people’s eating habits and remove addictions to sugar and chocolate, for instance.
The National Council for Hypnotherapy (NCH) says managing weight loss is one of the most effective results of hypnotherapy.
“Rather than just reducing calories that you are likely to put on again in the longer term, hypnosis gets you in touch with the reasons why you unconsciously eat. If you are the type of person that struggles to stop after a small piece of chocolate and feels compelled to finish the packet then a hypnotherapist can help you understand why and help you create new healthy self-management techniques,” says the NCH.
With more than 1,800 therapists around the country, the NCH is ideally placed to help in this regard. And finding a hypnotherapist near you is easy. Just click here to access the NCH directory.
Remember, losing weight with hypnosis is essentially about teaching you to feel good about yourself, whatever size you are. It focuses on making healthy changes to your diet and lifestyle that will remain with you for the rest of your life.
As well as stopping compulsive eating, hypnosis can increase your motivation for exercise. It can also help you reduce portion sizes so you lose weight healthily, steadily and for the long term.