Doctor in the House | Season 2 | Episode 4 - THE MASONS
Debbie Mason, her partner Peter and their two sons, Ryan (8) and Luke (5) live in Prosperous, Co. Kildare. Debbie suffers with depression and as a result struggles to maintain a healthy diet and exercise. Peter is a sugar addict, drinking two litres of fizzy drinks every day. His high intake of sugar is so extreme that his teeth have started to go black and decayed. While Luke likes eating vegetables, Debbie struggles to get Ryan to eat much more than chicken dippers. After a week of being assessed by the doctors, the family come into the studio to find out what effect their bad habits have had on their health. Debbie discovers that nearly 50% of her body is comprised of fat, and she’s a hair’s breadth from being termed as obese. She is also told she needs therapy to improve her mental health, and is instructed to begin a course of Mindfulness. Exercise will also play a huge role not only for her, but for the whole family. Peter learns that he consumes 10 times the recommended daily limit of sugar and has significant infection in his teeth. He is ordered to go to a dentist as a matter of urgency. Over the next 8 weeks they face stumbling blocks as they try to stick to the Doctors’ Orders. Debbie struggles to follow the dietician’s advice on getting Ryan to eat a more varied diet – and Peter learns that at the age of only 29, his sugar habit has resulted in the necessary extraction of 8 of his teeth. Meanwhile, it’s panto season, and the family head off to the Olympia, but will they be able to resist our ‘Usherette’ as she comes round with a tray of sweets, ice creams and fizzy drinks…? At the end of the 8 weeks the family are re-tested… What will they find out? And will the news entice them to stick to their new regime?