Novocastrian

...and Professor Pedanticus turned in his future grave.

bigglesworth

Not a cost of living point, but having just come back from a fortnight in the UK we were struck by how much sugar and salt there was in everything.

I even brought back Heinz tomato soup, which has been a favourite of Er Indoors for more years than I care to remember. She had it for lunch yesterday and had to throw most of it away!

Tweedpipe

Strange you should say that, especially regarding salt. (Apologies for going off-topic again).....
We have an English butcher who comes into the region every month or so. Very occasionally we put through an order for pork-pies. Fortunately only ordered two, one was so salty - practically inedible, and the other was binned. Called him to complain, and he said the next batch would be ok. Ordered again a few months later. Same story - practically inedible, and haven't ordered since.

loy loy

Clothes in France are way more expensive than in the UK and of lower quality in my opinion. Especially children's shoes which for some reason do not come in width fittings either.

Also game console games are more expensive in France.

cyrian

Heinz was famous for high salt and high sugar content.
Salt; sugar; preservative (UK) and fat contents are all under review in the UK and manufacturers are under pressure to reduce them.
Many foods have labels or "traffic lights" to indicate the contents against daily recommended limits.
It is probably that your taste has changed having been more used to French cuisine. They certainly haven't increased the levels - quite the opposite.

bigglesworth

Cyrian yes I think it is true our tastes have changed.
We have also started getting cramp, which the doctor tells us indicates a lack of salt in our diet.
You just can't win, can you?

cyrian

Sorry Biggie I just don't accept what your doctor says.
We all eat enough salt contained in a normal diet - in fish and cheese and bread and in the normal cooking process. If you are concerned about lack of salt just add a little to your food.
The daily requirement for salt is one teaspoon (about 2 gm). A baguette contains about half your daily requirement.
Yes in very hot countries we lose too much salt in our sweat and we need to replace excessive salt loss by taking salt tablets.
It is more likely circulation insufficiency where the blood does not carry enough oxygen to the legs. Gentle exercise gets the leg muscles working like a pump which promotes better circulation.
That is why the soldiers standing at attention wiggle their toes to prevent fainting on parade.
Happy wiggling

EuroTrash

The nice thing about France not preloading everything with salt is that you can put your own in, and salt was an absolute revelation to me when I went to Ile de Noirmoutier and Guérande and round there. Salt is AMAZING stuff. You can get sea salt flavoured with herbs, spices, garlic, so many flavours but my favourite of all is with lavender. It makes so much difference to even the simplest meal (which let's face it is all I ever cook, I'm not gifted in the kitchen). I'll never by Saxo/Saxa (which is it??) again.

bigglesworth

Well yes - I run 3 to 4 miles twice a week. Exercise is, I think, key.

I do think the addition of a litlle salt helps. I remember (in a previous life) the American Sec State Health saying that if he could persuade Europe of the danger in sugar rather than salt he would not regard his time as wasted.

My doctor said everyone's rate of salt absorption varies. Me - I have no idea. So long as I can keep wiggling the toes I dont much care.
Given my consumption of wine, cheese, butter and (most importantly) beer, I think I am lucky if I can stand up in the morning.

I was selected for that nationwide health test here two years ago, and the doctors were quite impressed!
Last years results really surprised them.
My medecin traitant now refuses to open the latest results.

But then I am Irish.... And you know what they say about the luck of the Irish.

I am not sure I would recommend my diet to anyone. Must go now.
I have a black pudding sandwich to eat!

cyrian

If you run then you will sweat and lose salt through your skin just the same as for people in warm countries.
IMHO it is almost impossible for a healthy person with a Western European diet to be deficient in salt.
If you have excess salt in your circulation then basically you pee more - because when salt is excreted it takes water with it and you feel thirsty and drink to replace the water.
A normal healthy body self-regulates salt content.

Blackladder

Novo, dictionary's and grammer boks is dyrare in Engerlund (don't choke on your maple syrup mate, in 50 years' time they will be writing like that)
Blackie

Cad

Having lived here for many years we still find on average that when visiting relatives/friends back in the UK(south) we pay the same in sterling as in euros here, so at the moment its much cheaper here for us, depends on the state of the euro though.
Don't buy much over there, but always wicks emulsion paint and sometimes sainsburys irish beef if its on offer when there.

cyrian

Hi Cad
Welcome to the forum.
You, like me do not need to work in France to make a living and therefore our spending patterns are not appropriate for all expats.
I live between the two countries and I find that many things in France are more expensive in France. That does of course depend on what you spend your money on.
In the UK, we have almost constant sales in the shops and online purchases (to get the best prices) are more common in the UK. France is resisting the move towards more freedom regarding Sunday opening and sales but given time the inevitable change will happen.

Cad

. We did work here in our own business till 2007. Its all horses for courses. Always purchase "on offers" here, if you shop around you get a fair price, still maintain that for us things are less expensive here. Prices differ here from one region to another same as back in the UK. Yes the huge problem here is the French reluctance to any change.Salut

babyposer

I didn't get this one, sorry