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Soaps 'miss out health messages' Soaps 'miss out health messages'
(about 3 hours later)
Soap characters with unhealthy lifestyles should be shown reaping the consequences, say doctors.Soap characters with unhealthy lifestyles should be shown reaping the consequences, say doctors.
Private healthcare firm Bupa has released its "top ten" unhealthiest characters, arguing they could be used to hammer home health messages.Private healthcare firm Bupa has released its "top ten" unhealthiest characters, arguing they could be used to hammer home health messages.
It said heavy smoker Dot Cotton, from Eastenders, should appear breathless, with heavy drinkers in soaps having broken veins.It said heavy smoker Dot Cotton, from Eastenders, should appear breathless, with heavy drinkers in soaps having broken veins.
A BBC spokesman said it always tried to depict illnesses accurately.A BBC spokesman said it always tried to depict illnesses accurately.
UNHEALTHY SOAP CHARACTERS Dot Cotton, Eastenders: SmokerShadrach Dingle, Emmerdale: Alcohol dependentTyrone Dobbs, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietHeather Trott, Eastenders: Unhealthy dietLouise Summers, Hollyoaks: Alcohol dependentShirley Carter, Eastenders: Drinks too much alcoholCharlie Slater, Eastenders: Unhealthy dietLloyd Mullaney, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietFiz Brown, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietLeo Valentine, Hollyoaks: Drinks too much alcohol The survey comes as research at Derby University suggested an average of 17 units of alcohol were down on every episode of "Emmerdale", with a third of its residents potentially classed as "depressed drinkers", according to Department of Health guidelines. UNHEALTHY SOAP CHARACTERS Dot Cotton, Eastenders: SmokerShadrach Dingle, Emmerdale: Alcohol dependentTyrone Dobbs, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietHeather Trott, Eastenders: Unhealthy dietLouise Summers, Hollyoaks: Alcohol dependentShirley Carter, Eastenders: Drinks too much alcoholCharlie Slater, Eastenders: Unhealthy dietLloyd Mullaney, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietFiz Brown, Coronation Street: Unhealthy dietLeo Valentine, Hollyoaks: Drinks too much alcohol The survey comes as research at Derby University suggested an average of 17 units of alcohol were downed on every episode of "Emmerdale", with a third of its residents potentially classed as "depressed drinkers", according to Department of Health guidelines.
Many of the characters who are smoking, eating unhealthily or drinking too much, are shown as being in perfect health, said Dr Peter Mace, Bupa's assistant medical director.Many of the characters who are smoking, eating unhealthily or drinking too much, are shown as being in perfect health, said Dr Peter Mace, Bupa's assistant medical director.
"Characters who have been smoking for many years have implausibly good health."Characters who have been smoking for many years have implausibly good health.
"Though Dot Cotton has a smoker's voice - deeper than you might expect, she does not seem to be short of breath or wheezy, while Shadrach Dingle, from Emmerdale, should, by rights, have a red face with some broken veins that you may see with his alcohol consumption."Though Dot Cotton has a smoker's voice - deeper than you might expect, she does not seem to be short of breath or wheezy, while Shadrach Dingle, from Emmerdale, should, by rights, have a red face with some broken veins that you may see with his alcohol consumption.
"Tyrone Dobbs, from Coronation Street, consumes far too much saturated fat and does little or no exercise, which would realistically lead to high cholesterol levels which, in turn, may lead to heart disease.""Tyrone Dobbs, from Coronation Street, consumes far too much saturated fat and does little or no exercise, which would realistically lead to high cholesterol levels which, in turn, may lead to heart disease."
Shadrach Dingle is an alcoholicHe said that viewers would be influenced by the "everyday lives" they see acted out on the television.Shadrach Dingle is an alcoholicHe said that viewers would be influenced by the "everyday lives" they see acted out on the television.
"We ask that soap opera scriptwriters portray the effects of an unhealthy lifestyle more realistically, such as in the way they've handled other medical issues such as cancer or Aids."We ask that soap opera scriptwriters portray the effects of an unhealthy lifestyle more realistically, such as in the way they've handled other medical issues such as cancer or Aids.
"The soaps are an important way of getting a message across.""The soaps are an important way of getting a message across."
Soap characters are not always immune to their poor lifestyles - with, for example, heart attacks for Coronation Street's Jack Duckworth and Fred Elliot.Soap characters are not always immune to their poor lifestyles - with, for example, heart attacks for Coronation Street's Jack Duckworth and Fred Elliot.
A spokesman for the BBC said: "'EastEnders' has always highlighted health issues such as HIV and mental illness in storylines which have really engaged viewers.A spokesman for the BBC said: "'EastEnders' has always highlighted health issues such as HIV and mental illness in storylines which have really engaged viewers.
"Medical dramas such as 'Holby' and 'Casualty' often show the more subtle nuances of medical health matters." "Medical dramas such as Holby and Casualty often show the more subtle nuances of medical health matters."