25th April 2013

Celebrity Chefs – Mealtime staples or just for treats?

Today’s Telegraph article Celebrity Chefs – Are they making us ill? reveals, from my recipe analysis, that the meals we make after watching our favourite chefs on TV or reading their books may not always be all that healthy.   I analysed a range of recipes, from indulgent desserts like chocolate hazelnut cheesecake to mealtime staples like shepherds’ pie.  While you might expect a Nigella dessert to be loaded with sugar and fat, which is fine once in a while, you may be more surprised to find a fail-safe family favourite like shepherds’ pie to contain over 100% of the guideline daily amount for saturated fat in one serving.   Much as the evidence linking saturated fat to heart health […]
8th April 2013

Red meat on trial again… but should we first look at our gut’s occupants?

Today’s media reports again highlight a potential link between eating lots of red meat and cardiovascular disease (CVD).  This time, the culprit is allegedly a small molecule called carnitine, which is naturally present in red meat but are we getting the full story here?  Read on to find out…   Red meat itself has been linked to cardiovascular disease owing to its saturated fat content for many years, leading to recommendations to limit intake to 70g a day or around 2 portions a week.  Recently, the link between saturated fat and CVD has been questioned, with diets high in refined sugars, processed meat and trans fats being more closely linked to disease risk.  The benefits of red meat consumption such as the source […]