Tag: diet

Damn the diet

Vlad looked on in disbelief, as after 6 months of dieting to fit into the damn dress, at the reception Natalya really let rip - & his mom wasn't helping much, either.
Vlad looked on in disbelief as, after 6 months of dieting to fit into the (very over-priced) dress, at the reception Natalya decided really let rip – & his mom wasn’t helping much, either.

View from a Rhino House: the fat of the land

In a move that shames the Weight Watcher’s weekly incentive scheme of a printed plastic biro, Dubai’s government announced last week that it will pay a bounty to residents, in gold, for losing weight as part of a government campaign to fight obesity.

The 30-day weight-loss challenge was launched on Friday, coinciding with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when the faithful refrain from eating & drinking between sunrise & sunset. During the festival people often eat too much after breaking the fast, enjoying super-sized portions of traditional dishes loaded with fat & sugar that push their daily calorie intake to well above levels seen during the rest of the year.

For every kilo dropped by 16th August, contestants can walk away with a gramme of gold, currently worth over $40, Dubai’s Health Minister announced as part of the “Your Weight in Gold” initiative.

The top three dieters will win special gold coins worth $5,400 & each contestant has to lose a minimum 2 kilos to qualify for the gold payout.

“Participant must reduce weight but stay away from unhealthy methods, they should be present on the final day to measure their weight loss,” the Dubai government said in a press release.

In Dubai, & the other emirates, oil wealth & high incomes have led to overeating, high-sugar diets & a heavy reliance on cars for even the shortest journeys, leading to a drastic increase in diabetes & other obesity-related illnesses.

Dubai has a history of larger-than-life offers. It has previously given away luxury cars & yachts in lucky draws & is home to the largest gold market in the region. It even has gold vending machines in its shopping malls.

Anybody remember Aristotle’s story about Midas?

"He ain't heavy, he's my Banker......"
“He ain’t heavy, he’s my Banker……”

View from a Rhino House: you are what you eat

In the US, federal authorities this week shut down a New Jersey bakery after finding sugar in its “sugar free” cookies & saturated fat in its “fat free” treats.

Butterfly Bakery, in Clifton, NJ, which advertised its products as “Made with 100% Love,” was forcibly closed-down on Wednesday after a judge granted a permanent injunction against it.

The bakery was accused of “unlawfully misbranding” products as “sugar free” & “fat free” when they had up to 3 times the amount of declared sugar & twice the amount of declared saturated fat, according to an FDA statement.

The Butterfly Bakery says on its Facebook page that it has been under FDA scrutiny for nearly 2 years to correct the problems. It said 3 of its 45 items were cited for problems.

It takes 2 years to shout “stop putting the damn sugar in the sugar-free cookies”, or to just mention that it might be a good idea to “go easy” on the lard when your mixing-up the “fat free treats”?

On the plus side of this story, levels of obesity in NJ seem certain to fall….

"Honey, could you walk over & get me another pack of those sugar free cookies? I've almost finished the fat free treats - don't you just love this diet?"
“Honey, could you walk over & get me another pack of those sugar free cookies? I’ve almost finished the fat free treats – don’t you just love this diet? I feel thinner already….”

People with issue #103

Bill's hunt through the bottom shelves did not manage to turn-up any diest supplements but he did score another 4 kilo's of out-of-date chocolate for less than 20 cents. Just like every other day this week....
Bill’s hunt through the bottom shelves did not manage to turn-up any of the diet supplements his doctor had recommended, but he did score another 4 kilo’s of out-of-date chocolate for less than 20 cents. Just like every other day this week….