If you asked me to name the most hyped food of 2015, I’d have to say seaweed. This year’s seen a spate of headlines on the benefits of eating seaweed – not to mention numerous glossy supplements in which celebrity chefs offer up their favourite seaweed recipes. In July scientists in the US made the…
EAT BEANS EVERY DAY & BEST EVER BLACK BEAN SOUP
Eat beans every day – that’s the message from Dan Buettner, whose third book on Blue Zones came out earlier this year. It’s a message I like – beans are cheap, convenient and delicious. So to discover they’re now, officially, the world’s number one food for longevity was music to my ears. Thanks to Jamie…
WHY WE SHOULD SIT LESS AND FIDGET MORE – WARM SQUASH SALAD
If you sit for more than six hours a day, you need to get up – yes, right now! And yes – that’s six hours in total. And if you think you’re off the hook because you’ve spent an hour in the gym, you need to think again. New research shows our sedentary lifestyles are…
IS POOR SLEEP THE NEW KILLER? DIET CAN HELP
I’ve been a poor sleeper for over a decade now, often getting by on five or six hours a night. The recent spate of research showing the importance of sleep isn’t helping. Ironic, I know. But I’m not alone. The other day a girlfriend confessed to having lain awake all night worrying that if she…
HOW RED/BLUE JUICE CAN KEEP A SPRING IN YOUR STEP – POMEGRANATE AND CUCUMBER SALAD
The health benefits of blueberries, pomegranate and purple grapes have been widely reported recently, with experts claiming they can help halt the spread of cancer (pomegranates), prevent Parkinson’s (blueberries) and protect against hearing loss (purple grapes) among a host of other benefits. Every month another discovery is made about the potent medicinal value of these…
THINNING AGEING HAIR – WARM CHICKEN LIVER SALAD
A few weeks ago, as I was preparing to leave the hairdressers, I politely asked the stylist if she could stop my hair from sticking up, static-style, from the top of my scalp. For some reason, lots of short stray hairs were standing upright – and yes, it did rather ruin the look! But when…
CANCER, NUTRITION AND, ER, SOME SUMMER SALAD DRESSINGS
I’ve been blind-sided in recent weeks by news that a family member has secondary cancer. We’re keeping everything crossed but it’s tough news to hear. This, and the cancer treatment that a close friend’s mum is undergoing, has made me keen to know more about the advice given to cancer patients, and their carers, on…
IS THE REDUCED CALORIE DIET DEAD? KALE CAESAR SALAD
There’s been a lot of talk in recent years about the reduced calorie (RC) diet. Many long-term studies show that a significant reduction in calories (20-40%) promotes longevity. Scientists aren’t quite sure why it works but think the RC diet tricks the body into thinking famine is imminent. Your cells then rally and this postpones…
SALMON: LET ME COUNT THE WAYS, AND THE EASIEST AFTER-WORK SALMON SALAD
If someone says ‘brain food’ what’s the first thing you think of? My guess is that it’s going to be fish – and probably oily fish. And if it’s oily fish, it’s got to be salmon. It’s become synonymous with healthy eating in recent decades. And it’s not just the brain that salmon can help….
WHY CARING FOR OTHERS (AND RED CABBAGE) COULD PROLONG YOUR LIFE
A few weeks ago, a girlfriend and I were discussing the Nepal crisis over supper when she mentioned that her father, a top surgeon at Montreal General Hospital, was just off to Kathmandu to set up a trauma centre. “What?” I spluttered into my healthy, vegetarian meal. “Isn’t he too old?” Well, shame on me!…