Nutrition and Wellbeing

Out of home calories

Sue_Lloyd — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:25:32 +0000

I’ve been following the web traffic on out of home calories, and there isn’t very much. In these times of financial austerity in the UK I figure that we have more to think about than the number of calories that we are eating. Strangely our American cousins are really beginning to buzz about calories on the menu. Some people like it, some people don’t but most people are noticing that the information is there.

We need to know what we’re eating but so often its presented in a really boring fashion. No wonder people get turned off, lts make food and knowing about what we’re eating fun. After all we are what we eat.

Meat – are you eating too much?

Sue_Lloyd — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 10:55:17 +0000

The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition will be publishing a new report in the next few days. One recommendation will be that it would be best to keep meat intake, that’s all meat intake, below 70g per day. We don’t know exactly know what the report will say, however a taster was written up in the Telegraph on Sunday. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8335986/Eat-less-red-meat-Government-scientists-warn.html

I know from my own work that there are good reasons to keep meat intake low, this will reduce the risk of cancer, particularly but not exclusively bowel cancer. This semi- vegetarian approach could also be seen as a more sustainable option but not everyone would agree. It will be interesting to hear what SACN recommend. Whatever the recommendations are you can be sure that they have been well researched.

Salt – Fooling our tongues

Sue_Lloyd — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 11:29:18 +0000

Can our salt taste buds be fooled into thinking that food is more salty than it is? The New Scientist published an article about this last week.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20927994.000-taste-bud-trickery-needed-to-cut-salt-intake.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

As a population it would be much better for us to eat less salt and lose our ‘salt tooth’ than to fool our taste buds. Dextran molecules may be harmless thickeners but surely we want less additives in our food rather than more.

Worm pizza

Sue_Lloyd — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 18:45:51 +0000

Heston Blumenthal made worm pizza for children at Alder Hey Hospital. What a great idea. I’m not sure that they’ll eat worms everyday thought. One thing that Heston should avoid is trying to sound knowledgeable about nutrition. In the Sunday Times today (6th February 2011) he tells us that cheese pizza, with baked beans doesn’t contain any protein. Think again Heston…. yes it may look unapetising but it does contain protein.Too much strach also makes you lethargic and ends in loosing interest in food .. an interesting theory but not accurate. Heston’s food is great but if he needs nutrition info let’s hope he asks someone who knows …..

NHS wastes millions

Sue_Lloyd — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 16:29:32 +0000

NHS wastes millions was the Times headline yesterday. At Nutrition and Wellbeing we are proud to have been able to help the NS save money by reviewing procurement. Last year we helped the NHS save £140,000 - annually recurring. We specialise in reviewing clinical nutrition spending.

Review of regulatory framework for Public Health professionals

Sue_Lloyd — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 16:23:01 +0000

Yesterday the public health white paper was published, alongside it the review of the regulatory framework for public health professionals was published. Sue Lloyd was part of the regulatory review team, if you are interested in the outcome of the review you can read it here

Review of the regulatory framework for public health professionals

Fast food – interesting USA research on corporate government advisors

Sue_Lloyd — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:23:50 +0000

A controversial government programme which gives fast-food chains influence over healthy eating policies has come under severe criticism after US research revealed the extent of “relentless marketing” of unhealthy food and drinks to children. A report by the authoritative Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity found companies such as McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and Burger King spent more than $4bn advertising predominantly unhealthy fast foods in 2009.

For the full article: http://ind.pn/eYoZ0B

Source: National Health Forum- enews

Healthy Lives, Healthy People: our strategy for public health in England

Sue_Lloyd — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 16:28:08 +0000

The public health white paper was published today. Of course the media have been building up to the publication for a few days so there weren’t too many surprises. I was pelased to see a continued focus on the importance of a healthy lifestyle including managing obesity. It was particularly encourging to read that the NCMP will stay in place and there will be a focus on managing weight during pregnancy. If you want to read more you can access the white paper

Healthy Lives, Healthy People

Sunlight Robbery: Vitamin D

Sue_Lloyd — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 12:33:18 +0000

Oliver Gillie’s fasinating lecture on Vitamin D is now available on the Caroline Walker Trust website. Dr Gillie summaries that people only obtain around 5% of the Vitamin D that they need for optimum health from their diet, and that even a diet with enriched sources can only provide around 10% of the optimum level. The list of potential consequences is formidable, and with evidence increasing of the need to review Vitamin D requirements this lecture makes compelling reading.

Does labelling on menus mean that people use this information?

Sue_Lloyd — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 23:17:34 +0000

In an paper in the American Journal of Public Health the authors assessed consumer awareness of menu calorie information at fast-food chains after the introduction of New York City’s health code regulation requiring these chains to display food-item calories on menus and menu boards. Posting calorie information on menu boards increases the number of people who see and use this information. Since enforcement of New York’s calorie labeling regulation began, approximately 1 million New York adults have seen calorie information each day.

See article abstract: http://bit.ly/bQmZpp