For the first time, we have a mechanism that could explain how your lifestyle choices may impact the genes of your children and grandchildren. Mounting evidence suggests that environmental factors such as smoking, diet and stress can leave their mark on the genes of future generations. For example, girls born to Dutch women who were… Read More
Stephen Colagiuri, writing in the British Medical Journal, suggests that the case for the health potential of a low glycaemic index diet is”Clear for people with diabetes but evidence is weaker for those without.” What we eat affects our health, but there is considerable debate about the optimal diet. Consequently, the general public is bewildered… Read More
By Craig Sams replying in the New Scientist: “The discovery that nectar toxins are attractive to bees is not totally surprising (25 April, p 42). We’re all attracted to toxins. Fruit toxins and vegetable toxins are part of the “5 a day” that health authorities recommend. They are a key part of the aromas that our noses have evolved to identify as “delicious”.… Read More
Making even relatively small changes to current UK diets could have a substantial effect on the environment and the population’s health, two research papers have claimed (Green et al., 2015; Milner et al., 2015). The United Kingdom has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% from their 1990 levels by 2050, and some say… Read More
When the border between East and West Germany was opened in 1989, liberated easterners crossed over keenly searching for new fruits. For a time they were referred to as Bananenleute. A recent survey across Poland, the Czech Republic, and Russia shows that even now consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables tends to fall the further east… Read More
From low fat to Atkins and beyond, diets that are based on poor nutrition science are a type of global, uncontrolled experiment that may lead to bad outcomes, concludes Richard Smith (Chair, Patients Know Best writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ)). Jean Mayer, one of the “greats” of nutrition science, said in 1965, in… Read More
Everyone should be encouraged to be more physically active, spend less time in front of the television, and reduce their consumption of energy dense foods, takeaways, and sugar sweetened drinks, the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has said in draft guidance. The advice also encourages the public to follow a “Mediterranean… Read More
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