THE suggestion that fat people and smokers should be pressured by the NHS to change their unhealthy lifestyle might seem attractive at a first glance.

But where does theory end and the real world begin? Countless cigarette addicts long to be nicotine free, and most people who are seriously overweight dream of being slender.

But Swindon GP Dr Martin Strong who has lost two stone as an example to his patients knows encouragement is better than bullying.