Day after day we’re being bombarded with messages about how bad the food is that we eat and how toxic the drinks are that we consume.

You can only conclude from all these articles, TV ads, news reports, and Facebook virals, that the human species on the whole is dreadfully unhealthy.

Apparently we need to embrace the forgotten ways of our ancestors, eating and drinking only the pure output from mother nature, skipping all the industrial processing and chemical wizardry that goes on in modern food production.

Because apparently living that pure ‘organic’ and ‘holistic’ lifestyle will make us happier and healthier, and result in longer and more fulfilling lives. Just like our pre-industrial, medieval ancestors.

Those same medieval ancestors that had an average lifespan of around 40 years and tended to lead short, miserable, malnutritioned lives. Right.

The next time you read an article about how bad Coca-Cola is for you, or you see a TV ad for ‘organically grown food’ (is there any other way for food to grow?), or you listen to some hemp-wearing hippy moan on about the dangers of modern medicine, realise this:

Humans today live longer and healthier lives than ever before in the history of the human species.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a Mars bar that I need to wash down with a nice cool can of Coke.