Ministry of Health's Dame Sally forgets being dead ain't very healthy

In this report medical-officer-annual-report-surveillance-volume-2012 Just published, The Government's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Dame Sally Davies, without a lot of imagination or thought, recommends road cycling as a good alternative to obesity.

My followers won't be surprised at my response to this nonsense but I am sure that the DoH ministers, to whom I have now written, will now have some food for thought. Here's my letter.  

Dear Mr Hunt,

I am very concerned about Dame Sally's recommendation that road cycling is a good alternative to obesity and health issues.
For a start obesity is more about diet, lack of school sports, outside play, sedentary computer games and so on but although, on the face of it, road cycling for children is a good answer, especially to get to school, in reality, it is very ill conceived and highly dangerous. There are much safer ways of getting good all round exercise.

Let's actually look at what road cycling entails. It is placing one's unprotected body, on a slender metal frame on two flimsy wheels amongst and mingling with many large pieces of fast moving essential machinery, operated by complete strangers, of varying ability and mental capacity. Would humans normally wish to do that if it weren't cycling? How on earth can such a concept be healthy?

Perhaps the ongoing claims and demands for massive changes on our roads and to vehicles as well as more driver prosecution and liability is, in itself, a confirmation that not only is the concept dangerous, but that we are failing to acknowledge that it is by impossibly addressing the wrong answers too.

I have compiled two web pages where you can see for yourselves how dangerous and unhealthy road cycling actually is. The first http://bit.ly/HSkRAS (I update these continuously) and in one example one head teacher lost two students in two entirely separate road accidents. I ask 'Could that head teacher seriously recommend road cycling for kiddies now?' Can you in all seriousness?

On this page http://bit.ly/1e900Cq I focus on the road accidents injuries and deaths of top cyclists to show that, the more one does it, the more chance of being maimed and killed.How can the DoH ignore the concept, deaths and injuries of cyclists in recommending road cycling?
I don't suppose Dame Sally will now alter her advice, unless of course she accepts some culpability for death and injury of those who act on it.
WishesKeith Peat.

Our ref: DE00000852680

Dear Mr Peat,

Thank you for your correspondence of 28 March to Jeremy Hunt, copied to Dan Poulter and Jane Ellison about the safety of cycling for children. I have been asked to reply.

I note your concerns about the dangers of cycling and the importance of children having a safe environment in which to exercise.

Public Health England (PHE) is the national organisation responsible for improving public health outcomes and recently launched a consultation called, ‘Developing a national physical activity approach’ which you may wish to contribute to directly. Details of how to do so can be found at the following link: Public Health Consultation.

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/development-of-a-national-physical-activity-approach

If you have any further concerns you may wish to contact PHE directly. Contact details can be found on PHE’s website www.phe.org.uk  PHE

I hope this reply is helpful.

Yours sincerely,

Tim Marshall
Ministerial Correspondence and Public Enquiries
Department of Health

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please do not reply to this email. To contact the Department of Health, please visit the 'Contact DH' section on the GOV.UK website.