The British Dental Association’s recommendation that people do not eat fruit outside of mealtimes is absolutely astonishing.

For a start, I would venture that most fruit is not eaten as part of a meal, but as a snack, so following this advice would immediately eliminate the majority of fruit consumed.

Secondly, surely the BDA isn’t suggesting that any potential damage to teeth from eating fruit actually outweighs the dietary benefits that fruit can bring? What should we be snacking on instead? Cakes or crisps perhaps?

I’ve heard anecdotally before of dentists advising their patients to cut back on fruit, but for a major industry organisation to come out and state it seems absolutely contradictory to efforts to reduce obesity and dietary-related health problems.

At a national level we’re already nowhere near achieving our collective 5 A DAY, and the depressing truth is that consumption is static, if not declining.

Suggesting you should restrict your fruit intake is a bit like saying that you shouldn’t do exercise because you might pick up an injury. Perhaps we should all sit in chairs all day and eat through a tube. That’ll solve the obesity crisis.