Day 242 - 29 Apr 96 - Page 35
1 connection, albeit causal between a diet that is high in
2 fat and heart disease, and saying that there is actually
3 the very real risk of getting it. They are not the same
4 thing.
5
6 MS. STEEL: But "very real risk" has to come within a causal
7 link because otherwise it is a greater meaning and
8 therefore it must be admitted.
9
10 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No, it has not been admitted.
11
12 MS. STEEL: I cannot understand how, if it comes within this
13 ----
14
15 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I am sorry, I cannot help you any further by
16 trying to explain it. It has not been admitted or I do not
17 understand it has been admitted. We have had a similar
18 conversation like this before and I warned you then, trying
19 to help you, that you must not assume that it has been
20 admitted and you certainly must not now.
21
22 It is at issue in my mind as to whether if eating
23 McDonald's food may very well make your diet high in fat,
24 sugar et cetera, even if that is so, whether eating
25 McDonald's food leads to a very real risk of heart disease
26 and I cannot say it more often.
27
28 MR. MORRIS: If I can just say that if someone has a high fat
29 diet, and they eat a significant amount of McDonald's food
30 that pushes them over into a high fat diet or whatever, and
31 the Plaintiffs have admitted that diet and heart disease
32 are causally connected, it is not clear to me what we have
33 to show, because the Plaintiffs did say there was an issue
34 removed from the case and I understand you are saying:
35 "Well, there is still an issue about what the risk
36 involved is with having a high fat diet".
37
38 If 180,000 people a year die of heart disease of which a
39 substantial amount is due to dietary reasons, then we are
40 not talking about 10 or 15 people, we are talking about
41 millions
42
43 MR. JUSTICE BELL: That is your argument, but it is not
44 admitted. You may increase the risk. Let us suppose you
45 establish that you increase the risk of heart disease by
46 having a diet high in fat, the question still at large is
47 whether it is a very real risk, because if you increase it
48 from a 1 in 10 million chance to a 2 in 10 million chance,
49 it may still be a very far short of a very real risk. I am
50 not suggesting those figures apply to the issue in this
51 case, I merely say that to try and demonstrate what is
52 still at large in my mind.
53
54 Let us suppose that it is admitted that a diet high in fat
55 is causally associated with heart disease, let us suppose
56 you show on the evidence that if you eat McDonald's
57 hamburgers you will make your diet high in fat, let us
58 suppose that you establish that it therefore increases the
59 risk, let us suppose that is how the argument goes and it
60 is acceptable, it increases the risk of heart disease.
