Was the world really healthier in the 60s/70s?

[Lost property]

UK food in the 70's, and before, was dire. Spam fritters, as "cooked" by the RAF, crispy on the outside, soggy mess underneath. Pub food ?...well Chicken n Chips in the basket was a revelation as served in "The Two Brewers " ( RIP) or "Shoulder of Mutton ", Wendover...took a while to progress to Manchester however.

Friend of mine at the time came from St.Kitts, great guy, and not averse to offering his opinion as to UK food...after several "warm " discussions, he goes home to Birmingham one weekend and comes back to Holyhead with a Caribbean curry....this was on a Sunday, by rail, in Summer and in Tupperware containers....delicious on the way in...alas, the human body has two exit points when the digestive system disagrees...both worked in perfect harmony !

Junk / process food has a lot to answer for when it comes to obesity and Type 2 diabetes as does the fact the public now expect portions to rival the excess served in the USA....and many people have a reluctance to do even basic exercise. That's quite literally, a lethal combination

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Not sure those school sausages would have been entirely additive free...

Good chance they would have been almost completely meat free.

 

[PeterY]

Well into the 1970's , school dinners (not lunches) , were invariably cooked from scratch in canteen kitchens from raw materials - not an additive in sight.

Processed food began I suppose with things like Vesta Curries (just add water - followed by things like Instant Spuds , Angel Delights and other such "treats" of the era) - Pizza very rare and only really in big cities and that there London - and even then served with baked spuds and coleslaw.

Mind you - sugar consumption was pretty high in those days - as a family we went though something like 4 pounds a week......

I loved school dinners back in the mid 60's. Yes, it was all cooked fresh . My mum worked in the school canteen and in those days any leftovers she was allowed to bring home, so school dinners, dinner time and for tea. Also we, were allowed seconds at lunchtimes. I was a very active child, so I didn't put weight on and I'm an active senior citizen and I have never gone over 10stone.

It is noticeable the amount of overweight people I see nowadays, especially females (I'm not being sexist, just my observations) I try to walk or cycle and not jump into my car every time I go out.

 

[talltim]

.

 

[Acey]

As kids I believe we were far healthier.eg ,I used to walk the 2 miles to school and back and think nothing of it and with the bus fare I saved bought my 5 Park Drive and a penny book of matches

 

[Mojo]

Despite governments and media who often like to blame the food industry and what people are eating, it is asserted that the number of calories consumed by the average Brit has actually decreased since the 1970s. Even within this thread almost everyone has mentioned diet and food, whereas I would link any rise in obesity to growing inactivity, probably caused by a number of things but most notably the rise in the use of the personal motor vehicle, but of course other things such as computer games for children.

 

[SJL2020]

Despite governments and media who often like to blame the food industry and what people are eating, it is asserted that the number of calories consumed by the average Brit has actually decreased since the 1970s. Even within this thread almost everyone has mentioned diet and food, whereas I would link any rise in obesity to growing inactivity, probably caused by a number of things but most notably the rise in the use of the personal motor vehicle, but of course other things such as computer games for children.

True: our medieval ancestors apparently needed at least 3,500 calories per day, and it probably wasn't much different 50-60 years ago as most people had manual jobs.

All those labour saving devices (and central heating) have a lot to answer for.

 

[Broucek]

I'm a qualified actuary (death statistician) albeit I no longer work in that field.

Life expectancy is WAY higher today. Because certain diseases have been eradicated, we are much better at treating others, road safety and workplace safety are better etc.

The obesity thing is not ideal but even in the US (where it's much worse) life expectancy is still pretty good.

 

[birchesgreen]

I also note that in connection with this crockery has got bigger than in the past -plates, bowls, mugs, glasses - all bigger - I have noticed this if you go into antique / bric-a-brac or retro shop and look at crockery from the early 1970s and before - plates smaller diameter, glasses smaller volume etc compared with say a typical dining plate from IKEA now. I am sure bigger plates result in bigger services and thus more eaten.

I blame Alan Partridge

 

[DynamicSpirit]

As usual it's swings and roundabouts.

I agree with that, and your summary is pretty good and fair. Your point about passive smoking is a particularly good one. I recall as a teenager, involved in left-wing politics, commenting to the chair of the local Labour Party that I didn't like all the cigarette smoke that you got going to the monthly branch meetings (I guess at least half the members smoked and the air would always be thick with it). His reply was a blunt 'You can't stop people smoking'. (Shortly afterwards I stopped attending meetings, largely because of the smoke). And that was in the early 80s, not even the 70s.

A few other things from videos: Watching pop videos from the 1970s, it seems astonishing by todays standards how many very young musicians had obvious missing teeth. One example: In another thread I recently mentioned Paper Lace. Look at the lead singer on this TOTP video:

For any Dr Who fans: Think about William Hartnell. He was actually just 55 when he started playing Dr Who - deliberately cast as a crotchety old man. By today's standards you'd think he was in his 80s to look at him. By comparison, I'm older than he was when Dr Who started, and I go on 50-mile cycle rides, although I appreciate I might not be that typical an individual

On the other hand, an example of healthiness in the 1970s: Look how thin Michael Crawford looks (by todays standards) in this clip from Some Mothers Do Ave Em:

I'm pretty sure that is a healthy size and would've been unremarkable then.

 

[Busaholic]

As usual it's swings and roundabouts.

Both unfairly denied to the truly obese.

 

[matacaster]

Remember Leathers a very old chemical plant in Bradford near bottom of Bolton road off a side street. Nitrogen dioxide brown fumes pouring out of single chimney. If you parked your car nearby it wasn't good for the paintwork, so for your lungs not so good.

 

[Lloyds siding]

Remember Leathers a very old chemical plant in Bradford near bottom of Bolton road off a side street. Nitrogen dioxide brown fumes pouring out of single chimney. If you parked your car nearby it wasn't good for the paintwork, so for your lungs not so good.

Leathers Chemicals had another sulphuric acid plant in St Helens. Here's some comments about pollution at Leathers on the Sutton Beauty and Heritage website (Sutton is a suburb of St Helens that included a major part of the industry of the town)
"Memories of Leathers Chemicals from Sutton Beauty & Heritage Facebook Followers:
Makes me wonder if that's the reason I'm ill. I was born in Sutton and lived here all my life. That mist that used to come down was all over cars, grass verges and windows. My mum used to say about women’s tights getting burned off their legs. Have to say that getting rid of these places has made Sutton a lot more cleaner in the air and ground. - Kay Roberts

Could always tell a Suttoner from their cough, and there was always a strange smell from the factory. - Karen Wilson

Around 1965, I was working for Grayston Plant and Engineering Company in Haydock Lane. I was sent to repair a water pump that was on hire to Leathers. The pump had a German made diesel, pull-start engine, and they were very difficult to start. I was out of breath with the effort of pulling at the starter cord, when a whitish / green cloud from a leaking overhead pipe encircled me. I was choking, but managed to stagger to a nearby First Aid Station, and was given oxygen. I was told “It’s only a bit of Chlorine Gas”!!!!. That chemical works should never have been allowed to operate in a heavily populated area. - Alan Parry

I was a foreman tyre fitter at ATS in Sutton Road in the mid 70s. We had the contract to repair and maintain their trailer and wagon tyres. Whenever called out we would draw straws as to who went to the job, as we were well aware that never mind women’s tights, if you came into contact with the acid it would burn straight through your skin. - Stewart Brown"
from https://www.suttonbeauty.org.uk/suttonhistory/industry1/

 

[Ashley Hill]

Probably not healthier but moaned about it less.

 

[Worm]

If you think of the material conditions of the world back then I don’t think so:

- a lot more people smoked and the cigs were likely unfiltered
- leaded petrol
- black lung disease from the pits
- asbestos exposure
- pollution from factories and power stations

Interestingly these are all respiratory and don’t come back to bite you for a while.