People should limit their Easter egg intake this weekend to reduce the risk of illness while GP surgeries are closed, the NHS has warned.
Dr. Andrew Kelso, an NHS medical director, urged the public not to scoff at whole Easter eggs and cut back on cakes and biscuits all at once.
In an NHS blog post, he said Brits should do ‘whatever they can to look after themselves’ if practices are closed from Good Friday to Easter Monday.
And he warned that the extra sugar and calories people consume while celebrating with friends and family are “not doing our bodies any good.”
Dr. Kelso, who has been branded a spoilsport by critics, said “a lot of people don’t realize” that an average Easter egg contains about three-quarters of an adult’s recommended daily calorie intake.
Dr. Andrew Kelso, an NHS medical director, urged the public not to scoff at whole Easter eggs and cut back on cakes and biscuits all at once.
And he said ‘at a time like this’ – when the NHS has seen significant increases in obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay – he would ‘urge people to enjoy their Easter eggs in moderation’.
The warning comes after a Daily Mail investigation found that brands including Cadbury, Galaxy and Lindt have reduced the size of their Easter eggs this year, while keeping prices the same or increasing them.
Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at the Institute for Economic Affairs, said: ‘This infantilizing advice from an NHS killjoy wouldn’t be so bad if it wasn’t part of a wider warning to the public telling us not to intervene. our hope is in receiving health care over the holiday weekend.
‘The real advice is to get sick during working hours Monday to Friday and not on public holidays.
“I doubt there will be many people waiting 12 hours in the emergency room this weekend with an Easter egg-related injury.
‘NHS bosses need to take a break from harassing the public and let us enjoy Easter.’
Seven in ten men and six in ten women in England are overweight or obese and almost 4 million people in Britain suffer from type 2 diabetes.
Meanwhile, one in six children leave primary school with rotten teeth and tooth decay remains the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged 6 to 10.
Dr. Kelso, medical director of NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, wrote: ‘The Easter holidays are a fantastic opportunity for rest and relaxation with our families, which is so important for our wellbeing. This will also be a time for many of us when our consumption of chocolate and sweets increases.
‘Yet many people do not realize that an average Easter egg contains approximately three-quarters of an adult’s recommended daily calorie intake. At a time like this when we are seeing a significant increase in the rates of obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay, I urge people to enjoy their Easter eggs in moderation and resist the urge to eat one eat the whole egg in one sitting.
‘As well as Easter eggs, many of us will be gathering with family and friends for social occasions, which will lead to us eating more cakes and biscuits. Combined, it all produces a lot of extra sugars and calories, which is not good for our body. Enjoy your sweet treats, but please don’t overdo it.
‘This holiday season will also be a busy period for NHS staff and services, and I ask people to do all they can to look after themselves and know how to access the most appropriate source of advice and care if they feel unwell.’
Dr. Kelso also urged readers to stock their medical cupboards with ‘essential medicines’ such as paracetamol, plasters and anti-diarrhoea medicines, and to order repeat prescriptions with enough time for GPs to process them before closing.
He said A&E should be reserved for the most serious problems and suggested people try NHS 111 or a local pharmacy if they needed non-urgent care.
Tory MP Jacob Rees Mogg labeled Dr. Kelso as ‘Professor Po-face of the NHS’, adding: ‘A little extra mocking at Easter and Christmas is perfectly reasonable.’