Wartime families knew how to make do with less – plenty of people today could stand to learn something from them

Stockpiling and eating carb-rich foods without exercise will only leave us with more problems, writes Janet Street-Porter

A shopper passes empty shelves at a supermarket in London (EPA)

At times like this I wish my mother was still alive. Anyone who has lived through rationing and a war will be coping better than the rest of us with the prospect of limited movement, a restricted diet and increased personal responsibility.

On the beach in Kent this week, the only people taking brisk walks and keeping a distance were the fit over-70s, the group Boris Johnson seems so keen to place under house arrest.

This crisis has seen an upsurge in selfish behaviour, with a large number of young and middle-aged men in the early morning queues at large supermarkets. Sure, some might be shopping for elderly relatives, but not all. My friend’s daughter is eight months pregnant and queued for fresh fruit and veg, only to be shoved out of the way by these idiots when the doors opened.