Pay Large Boned People To Shed Their Blubber?

[youngmafbog]

http://news.sky.com/story/1224424/cash-incentives-could-help-people-get-healthy

It's actually quite an interesting study, for me the most significant is the small amounts that can stir a person into action.

But would it be right? Smacks to me of the time all the naughty kids were sent abroad on holidays or got to drive cars whilst the law abiding well behaved ones got nothing.

However, i appreciate we need to do something and short of shutting all Greggs stores and an outright ban on pastry (look at the outcry on pasty tax) I'm not seeing an alternative at the moment.

[LazyGun]

The question should come back to efficacy. Do the studies demonstrate that it would be cheaper to offer a small cash incentive in order to lose weight or give up smoking, and would such a payment save public money in the long term because of less medical interventions?

Its that long term benefit that needs to be studied and investigated now. Should that long term benefit exist, then it is probably worth doing.

[emmie]

give them 3 quid and perhaps that will go on pastries, i don't see the thinking behind any cash incentives for people who are overweight. You would have to shut all burger outlets, not to mention half the stuff in supermarkets would have to go, as to Greggs, are they any worse than any other cake and sandwich place, i doubt it.

[Mamyalynne]

It would be interesting to now what these incentives are, would say money off vouchers for fruit,veg and salad also be available to me who has no weight problems at all but am eating healthily?