Yes - John Fassenfelt, former chair of the Youth Courts Committee of the Magistrates' Association
I would fully support the idea of testing diets for young people in a young offender institution. In court, you occasionally hear of examples where young people have been given chocolates, sweets or a drink which made them hyperactive. This can lead to aggression and then sometimes an offence. Usually these examples occur at homes for children in care where diets are often not as good as they should be. However, it must be remembered that it is not just about changing diets, it is also about educating the young person about the best food that will suit their circumstances. Yes - Niamh Gallagher, researcher, Demos
Bad food does as much damage to our minds as it does to our bodies. The rise in obesity is glaringly obvious every day, but how bad diet affects our behaviour is less apparent. Jamie Oliver's campaign to improve school meals in 2006 was as much about improving children's behaviour in class as about tackling obesity. And it worked. Parents and teachers involved in trials reported better behaviour among children when they had eaten well, and close to chaos when they hadn't. So food matters. If reducing reoffending is a priority of the current government then teaching prisoners about nutrition is a good place to start.
Yes - Ros Godson, professional officer for school-aged children's health, Unite
Many people are familiar with the slogan "you are what you eat", but may be less familiar with the ancient Roman quotation: "A healthy mind in a healthy body". The fact is human beings recognised more than 2,000 years ago that what you eat has a direct effect on your activity and mood. When society considers a person as important, such as an athlete, a pregnant woman or an astronaut, then great attention is paid to their nourishment as part of their overall state of health. Unfortunately, vulnerable young people are generally expected to thrive on junk food.
No - Rob Lyons, writer on food and health issues for current affairs website Spiked
Reducing behaviour to diet makes no sense to me. If young men really are behaving more badly, it can't simply be put down to what's on their plates. When we see ourselves increasingly as individuals rather than as part of a wider community, there is less reason to have any respect for anyone else or society's institutions. Adding a bit more fruit and veg to our food will not change that. We need to establish a basis for common interest where we temper our behaviour because we feel accountable to each other, not just to the authorities. That's easier said than done.
