Cake in office as harmful as secondhand smoke: U.K. food official
LONDON — Bringing cake into the office to share with colleagues is seen by many as an innocent way to celebrate a birthday, share good news or even showcase one’s baking skills. But the top official at Britain’s food regulator, speaking in her personal capacity, has suggested that it could be as harmful as secondhand smoke.
“If nobody brought in cakes into the office, I would not eat cakes in the day, but because people do bring cakes in, I eat them,” professor Susan Jebb, chairwoman of the Food Standards Agency, told Britain’s Times newspaper. “We all like to think we’re rational, intelligent, educated people who make informed choices the whole time, and we undervalue the impact of the environment.”
In a statement provided to The Washington Post by the Food Standards Agency, Jebb said: “As the Times article points out I made the comments in a personal capacity and any representation of them as the current position or policy of the FSA is misleading and inaccurate.”
Jebb, who teaches diet and population health at Oxford University, noted that people have freedom of choice, but stressed that offering sweet treats at work could influence people to make unhealthy decisions. She also said working in a “supportive” environment is crucial to one’s health.
