Visit to a dietician

D r. J о n e s: Good morning, Mrs. Fat. Sit down, please.

Mrs. Fat: Good morning,D r. J о n e s. Do you mind if I sit on the sofa?

D r. J о n e s: No, not at all. You can take any seat you like. So you would like to lose weight, wouldn’t you?

Mrs. Fat:Exactly.I’ve been overweight all my life and now I think it’s time I started dieting.

D r. J о n e s: Oh, yes. I see. You know before I can recom­mend you a particular diet I must learn all about your eating habits. How many meals a day do you normally have?

Mrs. Fat: I usually have only three meals a day. I mean breakfast, lunch and dinner, but unfortunately I very often eat between meals.

D r. J о n e s: What do you have for breakfast?

Mrs. Fat: A traditional English breakfast. I have a glass of orange juice, a bowl of cereal and bacon and eggs. And then I drink tea.

D r. J о n e s: Do you take milk in your tea?

Mrs. Fat:I normally drink tea with cream, though I rea­lise that I should have it with skimmed milk.

Dr. Jones: And what about lunch?

Mrs. Fat: Well, that depends. On some days I just have a couple of sandwiches for lunch, but sometimes I also have a bowl of soup and cakes or pies to follow.

D r. J о n e s: What do you have for dinner and when do you have it?

Mrs. Fat: I normally have dinner at 8 p.m. I know it's a bit too late, it just happens so. What do I have? You know, I like to have a very substantial din­ner — a starter, like a salad or assorted meat, followed by a main course such as beefsteak or fish and chips and then dessert and tea or coffee.

D r. J о n e s: What do you have for dessert as a rule?

Mrs. Fat: Ice-cream or cakes, or both.

D r. J о n e s: And what do you eat between meals?

Mrs. Fat: Peanuts, chocolate, popcorn, crisps and stuff. Sometimes I just like to nibble candies.

D r. J о n e s: In fact, many people do the same and yet they have no problems with excess weight. Let me see... Do you fry one or two eggs with your ba­con in the morning?

Mrs. Fat: I actually take eight eggs, but I share my break­fast with my toy-poodle dog.

Dr. Jones: I see. Here is my prescription: Don't change your diet. Change your dog. Replace it with a labrador. Or keep both dogs and share all your meals with them. And here is the telephone number of a vet, who is a very good dog dietician, just in case your dog might need a correction of their diet.