The secret to a healthier, slimmer, less diabetic you? The answer, according to the government, can be found by slurping on a straw.
Last week, an NHS pilot scheme was announced in which slimming and, one would hope, delicious milkshakes and soups would be prescribed to up to 5,000 people with type 2 diabetes.
This form of the illness is a direct result of overeating and obesity — and it is the other big epidemic we are dealing with. When I started in medicine in the 1980s, type 2 diabetes was uncommon; now it is seen as a normal part of ageing, and even affects children. The UK is the most obese country in Europe, and during lockdown we have got even fatter.
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