health foods

The nutrients that help your self-defences stay fighting fit. Our immune systems are immensely complicated. At least six different cell types are involved in protecting our bodies from in-coming disease and illness threats. Read more

It is the little seed with huge nutritional qualities and a whole array of options on how you buy it and eat it. Linseed comes in a choice of colours and even a choice of names. On this side of the Atlantic we are most inclined to call it linseed. On the other side it is usually known as flax. Read more

Naturally-Occurring waxy substance cholesterol comes in two forms, good and bad. Good cholesterol is carried around the body by high-density lipoproteins (HDL) and is simply swept away after use. Bad cholesterol, transported by low-density lipoproteins (LDL), can be deposited in arteries, restricting blood flow, causing coronary heart disease and at worst a heart attack. Read more

Fifty years ago, we did not know it even existed but today Xanthan Gum is claiming space in an ever-increasing number of store cupboards. It is a thickener that can replace gluten in baking and keep animal products out of vegetarian and vegan recipes for everything from sauces and soups to ice cream. Read more

A handful of 12-14 nuts (40g) has 5.6g of protein and 3g of fibre and an impressive range of minerals. There is more than half your daily requirement for both magnesium and phosphorous. Magnesium is vital for bone health, the nervous system and controlling inflammation. Phosphorous is also important for bones (and teeth) and in addition, helps release energy from food

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A member of the mulberry and fig family Jackfruit is a native of south-west India but has moved on to the East Indies, Malaysia and many other parts of the world. Read more

Eating a Brazil nut might seem like just a simple pleasure that happens to have some real health benefits......But could it also be an act that helps save one of the greatest natural environments on earth, the Amazon jungle. Read more

If you are having a bad hair day it may well be an early warning that there is something wrong with your diet. Our hair reacts extremely quickly to deficiencies in what we are eating. Hair cells are the second fastest-growing part of the body (the first is bone marrow) and as such they rapidly begin to suffer if they are denied their essentials.

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Almonds are one of the best food sources of Vitamin E the antioxidant linked to fighting heart disease as well as keeping skin and eyes healthy and supporting the immune system. They are packed with unsaturated fats which helps reduce “bad” cholesterol and maintain the good variety. Eating a handful of nuts daily has been shown to dramatically reduce the risk of heart disease and early death.

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The NHS recommends eating pumpkin seeds. It says that in the battle to lower cholesterol and fight heart disease we should try to replace foods high in saturated fats with small amounts of food high in unsaturated fats like pumpkin seeds. Read more

In 2019 a quarter of a million people from around the globe took the Veganuary pledge to try a month of veganism and almost half of them say they will stay vegan. So, it seems certain that the opening of not just a new year, but the new 2020s decade will make a truly major impact on the plant-based eating boom in the UK. Read more