Staying active

So‚ think you know your antioxidants from your antidepressants? Dr Alan Maryon Davis’ new book Feeling Good! busts a few common food myths that may surprise you!

Here’s an extract to whet your appetite:

 

Myth 1: Healthy food is boring

What a sad delusion! Just look at the wonderful array of fruit and vegetables in your local supermarket or farmers’ market. Feast your eyes on the fresh fish stall. Browse through the delicious low-fat and no-added-sugar products. And look at all those herbs and spices that can add fascinating flavours to your meals. Think Mediterranean‚ Middle Eastern or Chinese. How can you say that a healthy diet is boring?

Myth 2: Superfoods are superior foods

‘Superfoods’‚ a term recently coined in the USA‚ are foods singled out as being particularly rich sources of vital nutrients such as vitamins‚ minerals and antioxidants which help to protect against heart disease and cancer. Blueberries‚ for example‚ have enjoyed a huge surge of popularity since they’ve been found to contain high levels of antioxidants. Spinach is rich in carotenoids (another antioxidant). Dark chocolate is packed with flavonoids (yet another antioxidant). And even good old workaday tea (any blend) is infused with these wonderful biochemicals.

But does all this make these foods superior to other foods? The answer is no‚ not really. OK‚ they may be full of goodies – but many other foods contain lots of goodies too‚ particularly fruits‚ leafy vegetables‚ grains and pulses. The plain fact is that you can get more of the vital vitamins‚ minerals and antioxidants than you’ll ever need simply by eating a variety of healthy foods plucked at random from any supermarket shelf. Why pay silly prices for blueberries flown in from the other side of the world when you can get the same benefit from an apple or two grown in an orchard down the road?

Myth 3: Lean meat is fat-free

Even the leanest meat contains some fat. You may need a magnifying glass to see it‚ but it’s there nestling in among the fibres of flesh. Take a nice deep red lean fillet steak‚ for instance – about 5 per cent is fat. A skinless chicken breast is saintly by comparison – only about 2 per cent fat. The darker meat in poultry has a little more fat and anything with skin on it is fattier still.

Myth 4: Bread and potatoes are fattening

Not if you avoid smearing the bread with butter or margarine and boil or bake your potatoes rather than fry or roast them. It’s the way we cook and eat these starchy carbohydrates that can pile on the calories. Starchy foods provide about the same number of calories‚ weight for weight‚ as protein – just over 4 calories per gram. But because‚ unlike sugar‚ starch is a ‘complex’ carbohydrate with very large fluffy molecules‚ it is much lighter than either sugar or protein and a little goes a long way. In other words‚ starchy foods like bread‚ potatoes‚ rice‚ pasta‚ maize and beans are satisfyingly bulky for their weight. You can fill yourself up without overloading yourself with calories so long as you can restrain yourself when it comes to
knobs of butter or – horror of horrors – fried bread.

Myth 5: Margarine is less fattening than butter

Unless you choose low-fat margarine‚ there’s no significant difference in calorie content between butter and marge or between ‘hard’ butter and ‘spreadable’ butter. They are all about 7 to 8 calories per gram. But low-fat and ‘lite’ spreads are definitely lower in calories because they are emulsions of fat and water.

Myth 6: Bottled water is healthier than tap water

In terms of purity and safety‚ most bottled water is no better than the tap water available in developed countries such as Europe or the USA. In fact‚ many samples of bottled water have been found to have relatively high levels of potentially toxic minerals and bacteria.
There are very exacting standards for levels of contaminants and frequency of testing for tap water. The standards for bottled water are much less stringent.

Myth 7: All alcohol is bad for you

There does seem to be increasing evidence that red wines contain more antioxidants than white wines‚ and that they may have an additional heart-protecting effect if consumed in moderation (no more than a small glass or two a day). UK scientists have found that the more tannic red wines – such as those from south-west France‚ which are fermented for longer with the grape skins and pips – seem to have the most potent protective effect on the inner lining of the arteries. Interestingly‚ the inhabitants of south-west France are noted for their longevity. But this could be for any number of reasons‚ not least of which is their high consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables‚ loaded with – you guessed it – antioxidants.

Myth 8: A healthy diet is expensive

It doesn’t have to be. Remember that processed foods and ‘ready meals’ tend to be relatively expensive. You can eat a healthy balance of foods without breaking the bank. Semi-skimmed or skimmed milk or low-fat cheeses are about the same price as the full-fat alternatives. Most fruit and vegetables are not expensive‚ particularly if they’re in season. Chicken and turkey are usually cheaper than red meat. Some fish is expensive‚ but bought once or twice a week it shouldn’t make too big a dent in your budget and the canned variety is really quite cheap. Starchy staples – such as rice‚ potatoes‚ bread‚ pulses and cereals – are all modestly priced.

Want to read more?

Bust more healthy food myths and get great tips on how you can feel better in our book Feeling good!