This article is written in English for international readers.
Before diving into this personal reflection,
I wrote a more abstract essay exploring the broader question of indulgence regulation, freedom, and self-control.
If you prefer ideas before experiences, you may want to start there:
There is a phrase I like—and fear at the same time:
“Everything delicious is made of fat and sugar.”
I admire the honesty of it.
It feels like a small truth about the world.
And yet, no matter how often I remind myself of it as a warning,
I still fail—again and again—to stop my cravings or my weight gain.
This is not a metaphor.
It is simply how I live.
The News That Made Me Stop and Think
Recently, the UK has moved toward stronger regulation of so-called indulgent products.
One policy restricts advertising for junk food high in fat, salt, and sugar—especially before 9 p.m., when children are likely to be watching. Another proposal aims to ban the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to children under 16.
The stated goal is public health: reducing childhood obesity, improving sleep and concentration, and lowering long-term healthcare costs.
On paper, this all sounds reasonable.
But while reading these articles, I found myself stuck on a different question:
Where, exactly, do we decide that something becomes “bad”?
Are Indulgences Fundamentally Different?
Is the problem simply how much we consume?
Or are some things harmful by their very existence?
Because I struggle with daily life more than most, I tend to simplify the world aggressively. It is how I preserve what little mental energy I have.
That means my conclusions may sound blunt—perhaps even reckless.
But please allow me that honesty.
In my mind, the following all exist on the same line:
- Drugs
- Alcohol
- Tobacco
- Energy drinks
- Junk food
- Gambling
To me, they point in the same direction.
The difference is not morality.
It is resolution of risk.
I went through compulsory education, but I honestly cannot remember learning anything concrete about the dangers of drugs. I was left with only a vague impression: dangerous things exist.
Most of my sense of risk was formed later—through books, news, and social narratives.
And sometimes I wonder:
From a purely practical perspective, is junk food—cheap, legal, and endlessly accessible—not more damaging to humanity than drugs that are illegal and difficult to obtain?
This may be a peaceful-country thought.
But it is a sincere one.
For what it is worth, junk food is the indulgence I personally fail to control most often.
I am “working on it,” one could say.
Or one could say I am simply leaving it unattended.
Both descriptions are true.
What Counts as a “Healthy” Indulgence?
Consider something universally praised, like walking.
Even then, I worry about wear and tear on my knees.
But in general, walking is said to offer:
- No harm to others
- Stress relief and mental refreshment
- Improved physical fitness
- Moderate release of brain chemicals like dopamine and serotonin
That last point matters most to me.
Moderation.
I am very bad at it.
Why? Because finding an “optimal balance” in complex situations causes me intense stress. I do not naturally sense the right amount of anything.
Perhaps what makes unhealthy indulgences dangerous is not pleasure itself, but how easily they push those brain chemicals into excess—beyond what a person can realistically control.
Still, I am not fully satisfied with simply saying,
“Too much of anything is bad.”
That feels incomplete.
Where Does the Harm Actually Lie?
One axis is obvious: harm to others.
Alcohol and drugs can make people violent or reckless.
Even junk food—at least for me—seems to make me more irritable when consumed in excess.
There is research suggesting that rapid blood sugar fluctuations can affect mood and emotional stability. I do not need a study to believe this. I recognize it in myself.
Another axis is harm to society.
If an individual ruins their own life through free choices, we tend to call it personal responsibility.
But when such behavior becomes widespread, it stops being private.
History offers clear examples—from the Opium Wars to modern synthetic drug crises—where mass indulgence weakens entire societies.
Seen from that angle, UK advertising restrictions begin to look less like moral policing and more like risk management.
Whether they work is another question.
But the direction itself is understandable.
Children, Adults, and Responsibility
I support protecting children.
Limiting exposure and access for those without full responsibility makes sense to me.
But adults are a different matter.
The moment you become an adult, responsibility arrives all at once—whether you are prepared or not.
What happens to adults like me, whose self-control never fully developed?
The answer is simple: personal responsibility.
Yet too much regulation makes life suffocating.
Too little, and I lose all structure.
This tension—between freedom and constraint—defines much of my discomfort with society.
It may sound dramatic to call this “the space between freedom and social order,” but that is genuinely how it feels.
How Regulation Might Affect Me Personally
If similar rules were introduced in Japan, what would change?
- French fries once a week
- A 1.5-liter bottle of Coke Zero per week
- Heavy ramen once a month
Honestly, I can imagine myself becoming healthier.
If such limits were enforced through something like purchase caps—removing the need for constant self-judgment—I might even welcome them.
But if the same goal were pursued through higher taxes, I would likely feel anger instead.
I am probably underestimating where strict regulation could eventually lead.
And yet, as someone gradually drifting away from society, I cannot ignore this truth:
Uncomfortable rules and external constraints are part of what still holds me together.
I dislike them.
I resent them.
But without them, I might lose my shape entirely.
That contradiction is difficult to explain—even to myself.
Ending Without an Answer
The global trend favors freedom.
But I suspect there are people like me—people who find freedom heavy, not liberating. People who need the outer shell of society to remain intact in order to function at all.
I do not understand myself well enough yet.
I do not have an answer.
I am simply standing here, thinking.
If possible, I would like to become a slightly lighter version of myself—physically and mentally.
For now, that means making small, imperfect adjustments, while carrying the weight of who I am.
Thank you for reading.
If you are new here, you can explore more beginner-friendly articles in English.
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