Being the mother of two overweight siblings, I made a point of watching the Friday 21 January edition of Xarabank, which dealt with the issues of dieting and obesity. I was, however, utterly disappointed at how the programme was produced.

First and foremost and starting from the panel:

Marion Mizzi barely voiced her expertise. And why is it always Ms Mizzi that we hear from on the subject when there are so many young, qualified therapists on the island? Is it a case in which purchasing advertising time (several hundreds of euros for a 30-second advert) entitles one to a place on the panel?

Xandru Grech spoke the most, and we also came to know that his job is that of a trainer. Antonella Vassallo is a TV presenter with no qualifications in nutrition, health or physical training. The icing on the cake, however, was Sacha, a make-up artist for Xarabank who spoke about her experiences while living in Germany.

I am sorry to say that Xarabank’s popularity is going quickly downhill, with viewers becoming tired of always seeing and hearing the same participants year after year.

I learnt absolutely nothing new from last week’s programme and next time around I think I would be better off just switching channel.

And finally, congratulations to all those who managed to lose weight without participating in the Kilo weight loss television programme, where all is laid out for them on a silver platter – 24/7 attention and a nutritionist, trainer and a health spa at hand.

Maria Farrugia

ST JULIAN’S