A hospital in Scotland has scrapped a program under which young patients were given vouchers for fast food at McDonald's after a legislator complained that the gifts could make "the so-called ticking time bomb of obesity even bigger and more explosive."

For eight years, children at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness were given vouchers for free Happy Meals as a reward for being brave during treatment.

But National Health Service Highland said Thursday it has scrapped the offer after the health board ruled it "totally inappropriate."

"I appreciate that the thoughts behind the scheme were to reward children who are sometimes undergoing painful and lengthy procedures, but there are other ways we can do this," said NHS Highland chairman Garry Coutts.

"As soon as it was raised with senior managers and directors it was stopped, and I would like to thank those people who brought it to our attention," he said.

The program was condemned by Dr. Eleanor Scott, Green party legislator in Scotland's parliament, who is a former community pediatrician.

"From what I know of this scheme, it sounds like the hospital is feeding the unhealthy eating habits that the health service is battling to stamp out," Scott said.

"I really do think something has gone very badly wrong and this practice of encouraging children to eat highly-processed food, likely to be high in salt, sugar and fat, should stop immediately," she said. "Giving out vouchers for McDonald's will simply make the so-called ticking time-bomb of obesity even bigger and more explosive."

A McDonald's spokeswoman said the fast food chain had supported the bravery certificates for a number of years after being approached by the hospital.

"The express intention was that this was issued to the parent of the child, who could then remove the voucher, should they wish to do so, leaving the certificate intact," she said.

She said the last batch of certificates was issued more than a year ago and that McDonald's had not been aware they were still in use.
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