Letters - Friday, October 23, 2020

The Government appears to think that gyms are not essential, they are as usual totally wrong.

I am a 78-year-old pensioner. I was diagnosed as a type 2 diabetic on August 27 2013. I reversed this on April 6 2017.

During this time I had two heart attacks in July 2016 and spent a week in the Cardiac unit.

I managed to get my life back on an even keel thanks to diet and exercise. This meant reducing portion sizes from a dinner plate to a side plate and going to the gym for cardiac rehab classes twice a weekplus other periods of exercise in the gym.

Before lock-down I was doing four two-hour periods of exercise a week, this was an hour in the gym before the two one-hour cardiac rehab and two days with a straight two hours in the gym. My daily steps were between 7,000 to 9,500.

The lock-down reduced the time at the gym to one hour classes and the restrictions reduced my steps to 4,000 to 5,000 a day which has now resulted in me becoming diabetic again and at a higher level than when I was originally told that I had become diabetic and my weight has also increased.

Regular exercise is essential to maintain a healthy weight and to keep the ailments under control along with a good diet and smaller portions. The gym is Covid safe with regular sanitisation and cleaning and everything is socially distanced.

The Government restrictions are putting me at more risk of Covid as it is pushing me higher into the at risk group. However, they don’t care. This sort of thing is not something that they have thought about and if they have been told about it they have just overruled it. When are they going to listen to the people? They always leave it until it is too late.

Terry Bennett

Blackpool

Response

Does this include pregnant men?

In tonight’s Gazette, October 21 there is a report that Blackpool Council has issued a reminder that free flu vaccines should be obtained as early “as early as possible by pregnant people”.

Does this include pregnant men as well as pregnant women?

Mike Picewicz

Blackpool

Politics

You’ve let local people down

On Wednesday our MP Scott Benton had the opportunity to vote to support thousands of struggling families in Blackpool with extended free school meals.

Over a million children could go hungry over half term and Christmas holidays if free school meals aren’t extended.

Families across the country are worrying about how to make ends meet but the prime minister is ruling out giving over a million children food support over the holidays.

Mr Benton ignored local residents, campaigners, including Marcus Rashford, and voted against extending free schools meals to help thousands across Blackpool.

Shame on you Mr Benton. You’ve let local people down again.

Chris Webb

Blackpool

DPCC

Health

Make sure you get your flu vaccine

Due to the Covid pandemic this year’s flu vaccination programme has been expanded to include more at risk groups including parent carers and children and young people with long-term health conditions or a learning disability.

This follows new analysis that shows an increased risk of having coronavirus with flu.

As a charity working to support parent carers we know many are often too busy to think about their own health. And we know that the Coronavirus pandemic has stopped almost half of families with disabled children from seeking medical care for themselves and their children. That’s why Contact is urging eligible families with disabled children in Lancashire to get the flu vaccine.

Getting the flu vaccination is one way to protect the health of parent carers, children and young people with disabilities.

Amanda Batten

Chief Executive, Contact, the charity for families with disabled children

Politics

More ‘over promise and under deliver’

The country is on its knees, millions are, or soon will, be out of work and the economy is tanking!

The Chancellor has done his best but it’s futile to pump money into areas that just won’t recover and it’s unrealistic to assume life will return to what it was pre-covid.

The Prime Minister has outlined his plans for the future but to be fair I think he’ll just end up following the same old recipe of ‘over promise and under deliver’.

He seems to be using the same ABC book of government as Donald Trump, where everything is ‘world beating’ or ‘the very best’!

Personally, I’d settle for something that works.

Richard Saberton

address supplied