Health Update: Coke and crisp diet

TEENAGERS may be at risk of developing scurvy, doctors from Belfast have warned. They report a case of the disease in a 14-year-old girl whose diet was typical of many in her age group: no breakfast; crisps mid-morning; hamburger, chocolate, crisps and cola for lunch; and an evening meal that she did not eat.

The girl's daily vitamin C intake, about 8.5mg, was less than a third of her requirements, they report in Clinical and Experimental Dermatology. Scurvy results in bleeding gums, muscles and joints, and can be fatal if untreated.