Science Catch-up. Carbohydrates and Health

PDF. Dietary modulation of gut microbiota contributes to alleviation of both genetic and simple obesity in children • Here’s more proof that obesity genes are not destiny! Even if you have a genetic predisposition to obesity, promoting a healthier composition of your gut microbiome through diet can alleviate food cravings, genetic obesity, and non-genetic obesity. No more excuses, right? If you’d like to understand the ins and outs of this topic, I recommend reading Are your genes, gut microbiome and weight connected?

PDF. Carbohydrates and Health • “Added sugars” should be no more than 5% of your diet (ca. 25 grams a day), says the UK’s Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition. This is in line with the WHO call to halve sugars from 10% to 5%. Just bear in mind that processed foods and sugary drinks often exceed this limit… loaded with corn syrup, sucrose, nectars, fruit juice concentrate, and what not. Have a look at 65 alternative names of sugar here.

Tax sugary drinks by 20%, say doctors • The British Medical Association is pushing for an “extra” 20% tax on sugar-loaded drinks. Why? To lower consumption and use the money raised to subsidise fresh fruits and vegetables. Do you agree with this? Let us know by voting in our poll.

Science proves what you suspected: hiking’s good for your mental health • Walking cheers you up… but “where” you walk also matters! Street walking vs. nature walking may have different brain effects. This is a well-designed brain study showing how long-walking in a natural environment helps dissipate your worrying thoughts and persistent mental rumination. Not a bad idea to bring nature back in your life!

Few U.S. adults meet fruit, vegetable intake guidelines • Data from 50 states shows that less than 14% of adults eat the US recommended amount of vegetables (at least 2-3 cups daily), and less than 18% the US recommended amount of fruit (1.5-2 cups). The WHO recommends a minimum of 5 a day (400 grams of vegs and/or fruit), and the Australian government 2 plus 5 a day (2 portions of fruit and 5 of vegs). Are you meeting your minimum? Have a look at our community stats in our Free Starter Nutrition Course.

PDF. Generation Inactive..? • Concentration and learning may deteriorate if you’re inactive, particularly when you’re still growing up… In case you weren’t aware of the impact of child inactivity on brain growth and health, these stats will open your eyes. Great recommendations at the end. By the way, we’re developing our new Advanced Child and Brain Development Nutritional Advisor course; you can sign up here to be notified when it goes live.

Whole Grains Explained • What does whole grain mean? What’s the nutritional composition? How do whole grains compare to refined grains? What happens to nutrients after processing? What’s the science of whole-grain benefits? How to recognise whole grain foods? All explained in this compact EUFIC report. Worth reading, even if you have an issue with gluten (not all grains have gluten).

Resveratrol, red wine and cancer: what’s the story? • We often hear that resveratrol in red wine helps prevent cancer, but on the other hand acetaldehydes from ethanol are cancer-causing. Then, which one is it? According to Cancer Research UK, alcohol increases cancer risk and outweighs any potential benefits. In any case, resveratrol itself is cancer-preventive and you can get it from alcohol-free sources like red grapes, berries, and even dark raw chocolate. There are other things you can do to prevent the development of cancerous cells, see Why Don’t We All Get Cancer?