You WILL Take The Bus, Porky

A couple of years ago, seeds were sown for an innovative new line of attack on obesity.

Many obese people face an increased risk of illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer. On average, their lives will be shortened by nine years.

But some might be unwittingly putting the lives of others at risk too.

These additional fatalities are occurring not in Britain's cardiac units, but on the country's roads, due to people falling asleep at the wheel of cars and lorries.

If intended as an attempt to run the old 'your behaviour is harming others' routine so beloved of the anti-smoking industry, it didn't gain much traction.

See, the problem of people eating what they choose is a real stumbling block for your archetypal finger-wagger. Those who spend their entire existence devising strategies on how to interfere in the lives of everyone else are, thus far, frustrated because even our absurdly bovine public are utterly unconvinced that it is an issue for anyone but the over-eater themselves.

"Passive obesity" as a concept is just too far-fetched for anyone to swallow (pun not entirely intended). Plus, any remedy - such as banning McDonald's, for example, or other restrictions on free choice of food - is fundamentally illiberal to such an extent that it would threaten the carefully-crafted 'caring' persona which public health relies on. When plain packaging of Bird's Eye frozen burgers finally arrives, the game will be up and the public will know that they're being dictated to by nosey, joyless, petty-minded, anti-social pecksniffs ... which, of course, they have been for quite a while already without fully realising it.

Still, it would appear that the obesity and road deaths approach is considered to have some mileage yet (pun not entirely etc) as it has re-surfaced in Seattle.

A new study claims that obesity could not only increase a driver’s risk of being in a car accident, but also result in more severe injuries.

The study, conducted by Canadian scientists at the University of Laval and published in the Journal of Transportation Safety & Security, claimed that morbidly obese drivers may be at increased risk of a crash due to weight-related health complications.

A matter for them only, you might say, but then this hasn't stopped laws forbidding riding motorbikes without helmets; driving without a seat belt; and, in some countries, riding a push-bike without wearing a piece of foam on your head.

Additionally, car designs that are less than sympathetic to larger frames could leave obese drivers in more critical condition following an accident.

Researchers additionally claim that carmakers should try to design vehicles whose safety features are more adjustable, in order to provide protection for a broader range of drivers.

Of course, this would increase overheads and make cars more expensive, probably for everyone, but collective punishment has never been an obstacle for the dedicated public health tax leech.

In all observable and documented legislative criteria, the 'something-must-be-done' crowd have identified this as a potential winner with governments. It's imperative, d'you see, to protect the overweight from themselves. If big, bad motor manufacturers won't do it, the state must surely step in. Not too onerous a problem, just a medical to ascertain BMI once every 10 years along with the renewed photo, and just think of the environmental benefits once anyone registering over 35 is taken off the roads, eh?

Several previous studies were also examined in the process, including one which found that found men with body mass indexes greater than 30 were more likely to suffer facial, spinal, head and upper chest injuries in a collision than those with BMIs below 30.

You'll get the bus, fat boy, and like it. It's for your own good, after all, and you'll appreciate the enforced exercise after a few weeks.

And just for good measure ...

Another study reportedly referenced by University of Laval’s medical researchers found that 800,000 drivers in the America with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea were involved in illness-related car accidents in the year 2000, which supported their claims that obesity-related ailments also contribute to road hazards.

Well, you didn't expect the 'passive obesity' idea to be forgotten entirely, did you? You never know when it might come in handy.

H/T NorCal David G