Food morale

She goes about grasping nettles that other columnists ignore. The “holistic” approach to health, while occasionally acknowledged, has not been put together purposefully. It probably has too many spikes, is too stingy a nettle for too many people.

But until it is properly grasped – and certainly comprehended as in Lesley Riddoch’s article – more money will needlessly be expended on public health.

The “roundedness” often referred to in education is an underestimated requirement. The body isn’t all that has an appetite and food for the mind isn’t simply a poetical phrase.

As the old saying has it: man does not live by bread alone. Psychosomatics in medical practice is deserving of more practical recognition.

Certainly, the connections and coincidences between health and social environment encompass more than just dietary limitations, and obesity isn’t all about quantity and quality of food consumption, however principal these are in the overall picture.

Hope can be consistent with better bodily health in the same way that protein can.

Morale contributes to our metabolisms every bit the same as vegetables and meat. Maybe it’s time for a broader diagnosis, such as Lesley Riddoch appears to recommend.

Ian Johnstone

Forman Drive

Peterhead

I find it more than a little annoying when people complain that there is already too much government interference in our lives (Letters, 19 August).

If we all lived healthy lives with the right amount of exercise and a decent, balanced diet we wouldn’t be one of the most obese nations in Europe.

This means there are obviously people who need help with the way they treat their bodies. It is ignorant for a person to assume that everyone has the same lifestyle, education and opportunities as they do.

ANGELA INNES

Dundas Street

Edinburgh