British wrap up sweet treats – by lying about it

British people have a much sweeter tooth than they admit to – especially to their partners, a new survey reveals. Latest research shows that people keep their guilty secret to themselves by having a sneaky chocolate favourite either on their way home or behind the fridge door.

Chocolate treat. Image by Ginny / CC BY-SA 2.0

A poll carried out for the British Heart Foundation found that nearly half (43 per cent) of UK adults tell fibs to their partner when it comes to admitting how much chocolate they eat. The Daily Telegraph reports that one in three said they have a chocolate treat on their way home while about 13% have a quick chocolate-fix while their partner is in another room when at home. And one in every two not only scoff the sweet treat but make sure they hide the wrapper so that their secret isn’t discovered.

So hard is the prospect that a quarter of British people say they would finder it harder to give up chocolate than sex, caffeine or alcohol. The poll was carried out by British Heart Foundation to launch its new DECHOX fundraising campaign. This is asking people to give up chocolate next month. The average Briton eats three bars of chocolate every week, or 150 per year. They are offering an incentive by pointing out that giving up the chocolate treat could help people lose as much as eleven pounds in a year.