Food Truths

Could a dollop of tomato ketchup really be saving your heart?

Tomato Tomatoes

Rain, rain, rain! I am getting fed up of it now. There was so much rain last week that my garden looked more like a marshland! So I am really glad to see the back of February and the onset of marvellous March! And I’m itching to get out into the garden and start preparing for this year’s crops. Hopefully the weather won’t ruin my plans! Last year, I had the most amazing results with tomatoes that I’d love to…
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What the Bake-Off judge revealed about our health crisis

cake processed food

A few weeks ago, The Times held a health summit. They were looking into the various crises in the UK right now, including obesity, unhealthy eating, long waiting lists and the ongoing aftershocks of the pandemic. When I saw it, my sceptic radar immediately began to bleep. It was not only funded by the covid vaccine company, AstraZeneca and the insurance company Vitality… But they also ‘provided evidence’. I could also immediately see that there was an underlying agenda to…
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The surprising reason why diabetics should eat cold potatoes

Could a plate of cold boiled potatoes be a revolution in dieting? And what about green bananas? Well, there are some nutritional scientists who think that this type of food is nature’s answer to the problems of obesity, diabetes and gut health. The concept is based around something called ‘resistant starch’. In short, resistant starch is that which passes through the stomach and small intestine and remains undigested. Normally starch in foods like pasta, potatoes and white bread gets turned…
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When salad becomes dangerous

boost food nutrients

BIG question for you. Are cucumbers a fruit or a vegetable? Most people say ‘vegetable’ but in fact they are botanically classified as a fruit. Either way, most people would consider them harmless. An essential addition to a salad! That is, until there is an E. Coli outbreak – which is when they can sometimes become public enemy number one! For instance, an E. Coli O157 outbreak in the UK in 2021 was linked to a food product containing imported…
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Why my grandparents ate buckets of sugar and stayed thin

grapefruit and statins

I’ve been trying to lay off the puddings a bit in January. But I made the mistake of watching some old cookery shows on cable TV the other day. My sweet tooth was buzzing as I watched Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall perform his culinary art with homemade marshmallows. Often the man from River Cottage employs fruit, berries and unlikely bits of pig to conjure up the perfect and healthy dessert. This time he used beetroot juice to make the marshmallow pink…… genius….
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How to combat acid reflux

How to wage war on acid reflux – my dietary tips revealed

A friend of mine works in a local A&E hospital as a nurse. He told me a little while back that they were seeing a huge increase in stomach problems. His surgeon believed it might be down to a combination of poor diet and stressful lives. (Well, I never!) I’ve certainly seen studies that link the rise in incidence of acid reflux (indigestion, heartburn and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease) down to diet and stress. Conventional medication for these reflux problems usually…
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