So it's the start of a new year and most of us have sworn off cakes and cookies and chocolate and alcohol for, like, EVER...
January is the time for self care; a time for chicken broths and sumptuous salads, hot water and lemon, early nights and yoga. All this we do to cleanse our systems, shape up a bit and help us feel 'back to normal' after the excesses of Christmas.
If this is where you're at at the moment, fantastic. But if you're not, and your plan to get through January is with CAKE (and lots of it too) we've got some bad news. Because not only are cakes and cookies not great for your body, as The Faculty of Dental Surgery have recently pointed out, they're also not good for your teeth. Thus, eating them at work should be discouraged.
Dentists have chosen the start of 2017 to speak out in condemnation of the workplace practice coined 'cake culture', advising employers to make a more conscious effort to curb the behaviour this year. As dean of the faculty, Professor Nigel Hunt, claimed, 'a culture change' is needed – nuts and fruit should be offered at meetings, instead of those beloved custard creams...
'While these sweet treats might be well meaning, they are also contributing to the current obesity epidemic and poor oral health,' Hunt revealed, as reported by the BBC.
'We need a culture change in offices and other workplaces that encourages healthy eating and helps workers avoid caving in to sweet temptations such as cakes, sweets and biscuits,' he added.
Of course, it's hardly 'news' to point out that sweet treats aren't healthy, but how many of us consider our gnashers as a reason to cut down?
The faculty has unveiled some useful pointers to help those who struggle with the amount they consume. These pointers include some obvious tips like choosing a low or no sugar option, and other less obvious hints, such as keeping a sugar diary to monitor intake and limiting consumption to, say, lunchtime – opposed to elevensies and tea time and when your colleague offers some, and after that tough meeting, and just before it, and when you're 'not even hungry' and when it just 'needs finishing', and so it goes on...
So yes, cut down on the cakes and cookies and not only will your bod thank you for it, but your pearly whites will do too. And if that's not a reason to have a gigantic smile on your face first day back at work this year, we don't know what is.
READ MORE: Sugar Explained - Where It Hides And How It Affects Your Skin & Health
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