Healthy Eating
I’m a long-time advocate of diets that are generally lower in carbohydrate than those encouraged by most Governments, health agencies and health professionals. I’m not very prescriptive about it, and prefer not in my talks or writings to give specific carbohydrate ‘targets’ e.g. no more than 50 g of carbohydrate a day. I do, however, […]
Cholesterol and Statins
Someone recently sent me a link to this report of a study which warns us of the supposed perils of eating eggs. The study on which the report is based [1] looked at the association between the amount of egg yolks people ate and the amount of ‘atherosclerotic plaque’ in the main arteries supplying blood to […]
Healthy Eating
Coeliac disease a condition in which there is an intolerance of the protein gluten, found in grains such as wheat, rye and barley. The intolerance causes a flattening out of the finger-like projections in the small intestine, which dramatically reduces the surface area of the gut available for absorbing nutrients from our diet. Not surprisingly, […]
Healthy Eating
I learned today that if you want to give a highly-processed, chemicalised, crappy gloop (margarine) a flavour that at approximates to that of butter (a food), then you can add something known as diacetyl. Apparently, this chemical has previously been linked to lung disorders and other health problems in individuals who work in factories where […]
Exercise and Activity
Obesity is essentially unknown in populations that live a traditional ‘hunter-gatherer’ way of life. As is well recognised, it’s different in Westernised populations. Why? Well, one theory, at least, is that hunter-gatherers are much more active, and are burning off more calories than their Western counterparts, which affords them the ability to maintain health weights. […]
Healthy Eating
Last week, one of my blog posts featured a letter which highlighted the relationship between television viewing, sleep and body weight. Television viewing is associated with increased risk of obesity, and this association may be due to the tendency for people to eat more as a result of falling prey to TV advertising as well […]
Healthy Eating
Last Friday I was invited on to the BBC Radio 4 consumer programme You and Yours to discuss the UK Government’s scheme to shave off 5 billion calories from our daily intake (about 83 calories a person, apparently), and the role the food industry has here. You can listen to the broadcast here (starts at […]
Exercise and Activity
I want to preface this post by saying I am a huge advocate of exercise, preferably outside if weather conditions allow. I believe there are physical and psychological benefits to being active, and I even ‘walk the talk’: although I do not run any more, I am a notorious walker and swim regularly. I also […]
Food and Medical Politics
Over the last few years there has been something of a diet revolution going on in Sweden. It appears that increasing numbers of Swedes are eschewing the conventional advice to eat a low fat, high carbohydrate diet, and instead are opting for something altogether lower in carb and higher in fat – the so-called ‘low-carb/high-fat […]
Healthy Eating
I came across this story today which refers to a study conducted by psychologist Brian Wansink and his team at Cornell University in the US. Professor Wansink is the author of the book ‘Mindless Eating’, and has a special interest in the often-unconscious factors that determine what and how much we eat. If you haven’t […]