ELIXIR > food

A warm welcome, great food and gossip – a perfect lunch at Mr Hanbury’s Mason Arms

Posted on January 8, 2018 by admin

Whether its accommodation or food I have discovered there is nothing like a quintessential English pub – and by that, I mean a pub that manages to balance local traditions of real ales but is also passionate about delivering a great dining experience and value-for-money.

One such place is the Mason’s Arms in Oxfordshire which also has rooms and is part of an embryonic chain of innovative pub restaurants. It was fairly easy to find in the middle of the countryside at least with a satnav. After turning off the M40 and taking the A40 towards Oxford I skirt round the city and head towards Gloucester. About 10 miles on I take a left down a lane leading to the village of South Leigh, just south of Witney and I soon see the thatched roof of the 16th century limestone inn called Mr Hanbury’s Mason Arms peeping over a wall.

Mr Hambury’s main restaurant

The car park looks busy even around 2ish on a weekday so I take this as a good sign. I am a little late for my reservation (accident on M40) so they have put me on a lovely little table in the bar and given me a very warm welcome nevertheless. My table is outside the main restaurant but I am glad as there are some very rowdy fellows in there downing port. And it seems I am in pole position to hear the pub gossip, not far from the huge roaring fire – lovely and comforting on this cold wintry day.

So, glass of Rioja in hand I chose my food from the menu: a starter of smoked ham hock terrine, black pudding, pickles and garden herbs (£8); a main course of 32-day aged rump steak, roasted onion and bone marrow sauce, triple cooked chips (£25) and the irresistible sounding Blood Orange Cheesecake (£7) and to drink mineral water. There is also a Garden Menu which I suppose counts as the menu du jour with 2 courses for £20 or 3 courses for £25

I note the very large pink neon sign over the fireplace that reads “What Did I Do Last Night?”. Hmm I think that is a bit unusual in a village pub! but apparently its part of the owners’ desire to make their offering a little bit different – decadent I suppose!

A neon reminder to behave yourself …or not!

With nothing else to do while waiting for my meal I sit and take in my surroundings. At the next table is an elderly and clearly well-heeled American man – kitted out English gent style in an expensive Saville Row tweedy country jacket and silk socks – who is conversing with a local. Although they are two tables away I easily overhear the conversation. The American is, he says, over on a regular jaunt to the Cotswolds and reveals that he frequently dines with “The Duke” and his wife while he is in the area. I don’t know any Duke’s personally but I do know there is only one of note around these parts and that’s the Duke of Marlborough of Blenheim Palace fame – Jamie Blandford as was. Enough said and my starter arrives. The American leaves – his chauffeur is outside luckily as he has been trying out the Malts and my first course arrives.

The food at The Mason’s Arms is a proverbial feast for the eyes. Beautifully presented with herbs from the kitchen garden, meat sourced locally etc. My starter did not disappoint although I could not get visability o the black pudding but I am sure it was there! The main of rump was perfectly medium done and the flavour not spoiled by the burnt taint of a flame grill as so many steaks are these days. The piste de resistance though was the desert. This is not something I would usually order as I am usually too full but my love of Sicilian blood oranges got the better of me…. these oranges develop their distinct colour/flavour as a result of the change of temperatures which can drop to freezing on the slopes around the volcano of Mount Etna even in summer.

The eatery and hotel in East Leigh is the fourth venture for owners Justin and Charlotte Salisbury who launched their brand Artist Residence in 2008 in rather more racy places such as Brighton, Penzance and London’s Pimlico with another planned for Bristol this year.

The reason the food is so good at the Mason’s is down to chef Leon Smith who has a Michelin-starred background including working for Tom Aikens and Wild Honey in London and the Pony & Trap in Bristol. He is passionate about using the freshest locally sourced ingredients. Many of the vegetables in particular come from the pub’s kitchen garden

Leon pictured left in the organic garden at Mr Hanbury’s

All in all, it was a perfect lunch with a warm welcome, great food and some entertainment for a lone but not lonely eater. Sadly, I was not able to stay as all the bedrooms were booked!

Fact Box

Mason’s Arms, Station Road, South Leigh, Oxfordshire OX29 6XN

T: 01993 656238

www.hanburysmasonarms.co.uk

Rooms: Doubles from £130, B&B

Wifi: free

Parking: on site car park, free of charge

Pets: £20 charge per dog, per night. Dog bowl and treats included

Tuscan White Bean Stew – the perfect cool weather warmer

Posted on January 7, 2017 by admin

A traditional Tuscan soup that is low in fat and calories and a perfect cool weather warmer

Serves 6

Ingredients
For the croutons
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, quartered
• 1 slice whole-grain bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

For the stew
• 2 cups dried cannellini or other white beans, picked over and rinsed, soaked overnight, and drained
• 6 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 3 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, plus 6 sprigs
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock or broth

Directions
To make the croutons, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes to infuse the garlic flavor into the oil. Remove the garlic pieces and discard. Return the pan to medium heat. Add the bread cubes and saute, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

In a soup pot over high heat, combine the white beans, water, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover partially and simmer until the beans are tender, 60 to 75 minutes. Drain the beans, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. Discard the bay leaf. Place the cooked beans into a large bowl and save the cooking pot for later use.
In a small bowl, combine the reserved cooking liquid and 1/2 cup of the cooked beans. Mash with a fork to form a paste. Stir the bean paste into the cooked beans.
Return the cooking pot to the stove top and add the olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat. Stir in the onion and carrots and saute until the carrots are tender-crisp, 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, the pepper, chopped rosemary, bean mixture and stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the stew is heated through, about 5 minutes.
Ladle the stew into warmed bowls and sprinkle with the croutons. Garnish each bowl with a rosemary sprig and serve immediately.

Myths about hydration

Posted on November 16, 2010 by Editor

We don’t actually need to drink eight glasses of water a day…

Elixir attended the British Nutrition Foundation’s conference on hydration last week and came away with a few very interesting facts about water.

1. The amount of water we need and use is different from person to person

2. We can survive more than a few days without water

3. Most of the water we ingest comes naturally from food

4. Most liquids add to our hydration, including fruit juice, milk, teas and coffee

In general, we are not very clued in about water and hydration – most people in the UK have a very loose understanding about the signs of dehydration.

We look for clues such as darker urine to decide whether or not we are dehydrated – the truth is that darker urine can be caused by a number of things – including vitamin supplements.

Thirst is just nature’s way of telling us our blood water concentration is dropping, not an indication that we are about to become dehydrated.

Serious dehydration is almost impossible to achieve – unless you are stuck in a desert or paralysed with no access to liquids. As mentioned above, it is possible to survive without water for some time; a woman who had been in a coma for years (in the US) survived for 13 days without any liquids after it was decided to turn off her live-saving machine.

The most shocking thing we learned was the truth behind the ‘eight glasses of water’ myth.

Research showed that over 70% of people can quote the recommended amount of water of six to eight glasses.

The truth is, the recommended amount of water is 2.5 litres per day and we ingest most of it in food. The less dense the food, the more water it contains – meaning fruit and vegetables contain the most.

As we get older we are more susceptible to the marketing ploys of drinks companies – we start to buy into the ‘health’ drink to lower our cholesterol and raise the pro and prebiotic levels of our stomachs.

Beware of drinks advertising an increased level of antioxidants as well – a study found that drinking tea gives you a better level of antioxidants over 24 hours than many health/fruit based drinks.

Fuss about food – Salt

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Editor

Salt plays a vital role in our lives, regulating fluid movement in our bodies and maintaining nerve signals. When we begin to suffer from salt deficiency, we experience muscular weakness, exhaustion and dehydration.

Salt is essential but extremely overused.

Are you one of the 26 million people in the UK who eat too much of it? We are a nation of crisp lovers – a double whammy of fat and salt makes them one of the unhealthiest snacks available.

Overuse of salt also leads to serious health problems: we are sure you know the warnings about its effect on heart health and blood pressure. It is also linked to higher risk of stroke.

Even if you are one of the saintly ones who do not put any salt on their food at the dinner table you are probably still eating too much – 75% of the salt we eat is already added to our food.

Look at the ingredients labels next time you go to the supermarket – how many labels tell you there is salt added? This is the case even with sweet products. It is added for flavour purposes, as perhaps a cheaper alternative to other spices; Salt is a cheap ingredient, like sugar, and also like sugar, is not needed in such high amounts.

Some experts think the only way to really reduce our intake is to impose a mandatory curb on dietary salt.

In fact, imposing statutory limits on the salt content of processed foods could be 20 times more effective than voluntary curbs by industry, finds research published online in the journal Heart.

The Australian researchers, from the University of Queensland, assessed the public health benefits and cost effectiveness of different strategies for reducing dietary salt content. They looked at the current Australian ‘Tick’ programme which enables food manufacturers to buy an endorsed logo for use on product packaging to achieve higher sales in return for voluntarily reducing the salt content of these products.

They also looked at the impact of mandatory reductions in salt content; and professional advice to cut dietary salt for those at increased and high risk of cardiovascular disease.

They then evaluated the different strategies in terms of their impact on years of good health over a lifetime, and the associated savings in long term healthcare spend.

The researchers took into consideration the salt content of bread, margarine, and cereals; the tonnage of product sold; average consumption per head of these products; the costs of drafting and enforcing legislation; and systematic reviews of the evidence for the impact of dietary advice from healthcare professionals.

Their calculations showed that 610,000 years of healthy life could be gained if everyone reduced their salt intake to recommended limits (maximum of 6 g a day).

It was found that providing dietary advice to reduce salt intake was not cost effective even when targeting those with heart disease.

A voluntary reduction of salt by industry amounted to a reduction of 1% in the population.

But the health benefits across the population could be 20 times greater if the government imposed mandatory limits, the figures showed, amounting to a reduction of 18% in ill health from cardiovascular disease.

The authors conclude that food manufacturers have a responsibility to make money for their shareholders, but they also have a responsibility to society. If corporate responsibility fails, maybe there is an ethical justification for government to step in and legislate.

If you want to read about research similar to this, the link to the Heart Journal is below…

www.heart.bmj.com

Get ready for a relaxing and fun christmas at the Spirit of Christmas Fair

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Editor

Indulge and be inspired this winter at the UK’s most stylish and exclusive Christmas shopping experience Spirit of Christmas Fair in association with House & Garden. Taking place 3-7 November 2010 at London’s Kensington Olympia, discover exquisite and desirable brands offering irresistible gift ideas for the season.

The Spirit of Christmas Fair is a collection of over 600 boutique brands, each hand-picked for their quality and originality, offering a sophisticated and exclusive shopping experience and a great day out with friends.

As well as gifts, the Fair offers fashion accessories such as Alison Van Der Lande’s luxurious bags and designer shoes from Gwendolyn Carrie. Renowned homeware designers Jan Constantine and Emma Bridgewater will be introducing their latest collections whilst Beasty Bags offer the perfect children’s gifts from gorgeous cushions to stylish beanbags. There are also natural beauty products, beautiful stationery, toys and games as well as gourmet food and fine wine. Stockings will be amply filled by the many brands exhibiting including dotcomgiftshop who have a fabulous selection of gifts to suit all needs.

If you would like to join us at the fair, tickets are available at www.spiritofchristmasfair.co.uk or call 0871 230 1089*

Advance adult: £16

Advance child (13 and over): £8.50

Tickets on the door adult: £18

Tickets on the door child (13 and over): £9.50

Children 12 and under FREE

*Calls cost 10 pence per minute from BT landlines, calls from mobiles and other networks may vary. Booking fee applies. Advance box office closes 2 November 2010

Eat more to loose weight – new diet advice

Posted on June 5, 2010 by Editor

London: Eat more to loose weight, is the latest advice from experts at the British Nutrition Foundation(BNF).

IIn a new leaflet entitled Eat more, lose weight the BNF shows how slimmers can eat enough food to feel really full without consuming too many calories. The advice provided by the BNF is based on scientific evidence that lowering the energy density, or the amount of calories per gram of food consumed, can help people lose weight without feeling hungry1.

By manipulating the energy density of the diet, you can eat much more food for fewer calories, says Bridget Benelam, Senior Nutrition Scientist at the BNF.

“For example, a home-made burger, fried chips, ketchup and a standard soft drink can provide over 1000 calories and weighs about 650g. Whereas, you can eat nearly double the amount in weight (about 1200g) for about half the calories, with a low energy density meal of, for example, soup, a low-fat sandwich, a diet soft drink and a fruit and yogurt dessert.

What is energy density?

Energy density is the number of calories per gram of food (kcal/g). It is mainly affected by the water content, but also by the fat content of the foods.

Foods with a lower energy density include those with a high water content, such as soups and stews, foods like pasta and rice that absorb water during cooking, and foods that are naturally high in water, such as fruit and vegetables. At the other end of the scale, higher energy density foods tend to include those that are high in fat and have a low water content, for example biscuits and confectionery, fried snacks, nuts and full-fat hard cheese2.

The energy density of the diet overall is determined by the balance of higher and lower energy density foods consumed. Small amounts of food with a high energy density can be eaten as part of a low energy density diet, as long as some food with a medium energy density and plenty of food with a low energy density is consumed alongside. Also, by eating foods with a low energy density first, for example, having a salad without oily dressing or a broth-based soup, youll naturally feel fuller and less tempted by the high energy dense foods3, 4.

Menu makeovers

The Eat more, lose weight leaflet shows how simple changes to your daily meals can make a significant difference to the amount of food you can consume for the same number of calories. For example, choosing fruit and cereal, instead of pastries for breakfast, soup and salad instead of burger and chips for lunch, and making a wholemeal pasta dish with a low-fat cheese sauce and extra vegetables, instead of white pasta with a standard full-fat cheese sauce for dinner, means that instead of consuming 2285 calories in 1487g of food, you can have 2321g of food for 1495 calories.

And it doesnt mean completely changing your eating habits favourite recipes also get a makeover in the BNF leaflet. A 400g portion of spaghetti Bolognese with standard mince, bacon and full-fat cheese contains 760 calories. However, a few simple changes can cut its calorie content by well over half. Using lean mince instead of standard mince, choosing wholemeal spaghetti, adding plenty of vegetables and using a smaller portion of a reduced-fat cheese brings the calorie content of a 400g portion down to 330 calories.

Avoiding weight-loss pitfalls

The leaflet also addresses key behaviours that can make or break attempts at weight loss. Benelam continues Its important to remember that we live in an obesogenic* environment and that we need to consider other aspects of our lifestyle, as well as the foods we eat. Things like keeping active, avoiding distractions while eating and resisting the temptation to try every dish at a buffet can really help keep weight control on track.

*Factors tending to make people overweight

1Benelam (2009) Satiation, satiety and their effects on eating behaviour. Nutrition Bulletin 34(2) 126-173

2 BNFs feed yourself fuller chart provides examples of foods with a high medium and low energy density. Find here at Feed Yourself Fuller Chart

3 Flood JE & Rolls BJ (2007) Soup preloads in a variety of forms reduce meal energy intake. Appetite 49(3) 626-34

4 Rolls BJ, Roe LS & Meengs JS (2004) Salad and satiety: Energy density and portion size of a first-course salad affect energy intake at lunch. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 104 (10) 1570-1576

Low energy density recipe

Spaghetti Bolognese**

Serves 6

The picture below shows the low energy density recipe on the right, and a higher energy density version on the left. Although the low energy density version is nearly double the weight of the higher energy density dish, they contain the same amount of calories.

**Recipe provided by Slimming World

Ingredients

Low calorie cooking spray
1 onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely diced
2 celery sticks, finely diced
1 red pepper and 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
200g/7 oz button mushrooms,thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced
1 tsp dried oregano
400g/1lb extra lean minced beef
A handful of fresh basil leaves
2 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
1 tsp artificial sweetener
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
380g/13½ oz dried wholewheat spaghetti
grated reduced-fat Cheddar cheese, to garnish (optional)

Method

1. Spray a large, non-stick pan with low calorie cooking spray and cook the vegetables, garlic,red chilli and oregano for 4-5 minutes. Add the minced beef and fry for a further 3-4 minutes.

2. Reserving a few leaves for garnish, finely chop the basil. Add to the pan along with the chopped tomatoes and sweetener. Season well, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to the packet instructions, drain and keep warm.

3. Remove the sauce from the heat, divide the spaghetti between four warmed plates, and spoon the sauce over. Garnish with the remaining basil and the grated cheese, if using, and serve immediately.

Calories per serving: 330 kcal Energy density: 0.75 kcal/g

Mixed berries, yogurt, granola, honey

Below is the mixed berries yoghurt and honey recipe, compared with a portion of strawberries and cream. Although the portion sizes are clearly different these two dishes contain the same number of calories.

Serves 1

Ingredients

100g low-fat yogurt
1 tablespoon granola
5 fresh strawberries (60g)
15 fresh raspberries (60g)
50g fresh blueberries
1 teaspoon honey

Method

1. Rinse the strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.
2. Place in a bowl or tall glass and cover with the low fat yogurt.
3. Sprinkle the granola on top and drizzle with honey.

Calories per serving: 215 kcal Energy density: 0.7 kcal/g

The leaflet Eat more, weigh less is published by the BNF and available on the BNF website at Leaflet This leaflet is based on research in the area of satiety and appetite control, published by the Foundation

BNF was established over 40 years ago and exists to deliver authoritative, evidence-based information on food and nutrition in the context of health and lifestyle. The Foundations work is conducted and communicated through a unique blend of nutrition science, education and media activities. BNFs strong governance is broad-based but weighted towards the academic community. BNF is a registered charity that attracts funding from a variety of sources, including contracts with the European Commission, national government departments and agencies; food producers and manufacturers, retailers and food service companies; grant providing bodies, trusts and other charities.

The Foundation thanks Slimming World for their advice and help on the content and design of this leaflet.

The British Nutrition Foundation is a registered charity. It promotes the wellbeing of society through the impartial interpretation and effective dissemination of scientifically based knowledge and advice on the relationship between diet, physical activity and health.

Turkish delight in Istanbul – the Ritz-Carlton Spa

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Editor

by Avril O’Connor

There really is no other city like Istanbul. Uniquely straddling both Asia and Europe, it is frenetic melting pot of cultures and peoples. It is architecturally breathtaking with the greatest examples of Byzantine and Ottoman art and architecture anywhere in the world today.

At the same time it is a city undergoing an economic revival with entrepreneurs opening up trendy shops, bars and restaurants. It has one of the youngest populations of any city. In the numerous cafes you are more likely to find yourself sitting next to Prada-clad locals than anyone wearing a Fez.

So whether you want to marvel at some of the world’s greatest buildings or shop till you drop, Istanbul will have something wonderful and enchanting for you. Another reason to visit now is that Istanbul has been named European City of Culture next year – so get there before the crowds!

One of the most luxurious and romantic places to stay is the Ritz-Carlton Hotel right in the centre of the city. There are not many hotels where you can watch a giant supertanker pass by your bedroom window! And don’t be fooled by the skyscraper exterior, inside this hotel is seriously sumptuous. It is decorated in Ottoman-style splendor with service to match. All rooms have flat screen TV, broadband Wi-Fi internet access, Bulgari toiletries, huge marble bathrooms and terry bathrobes.

The Laveda Spa, offering both Western and Eastern therapies using Carita of Paris products is the best in the city. There is a spacious pool surrounded by Byzantine columns and a painted ceiling to recreate the Istanbul sky. You can try a Turkish Haman – a traditional ritual of exfoliation and cleansing with a total body wash, followed by a massage.

In summer the open air spa allows you to feel the gentle breezes while indulging in a massage or other therapy as you gaze across the Bosphorus. One particular sumptuous and relaxing treatment is the Sultans Royal Six Hands Massage which is carried out by three therapists. Beware this spa is so relaxing that you may not want to leave – but it does have a poolside bar!

Fact Box Ritz-Carlton Istanbul FROM $452, 290 £229, per room per night (+ 8%VAT) Breakfast: $43, 28, £22 (+VAT)

Traditional Hamam Treatment 30 mnts: $83, 53, £42
Laveda Signature Body Massage 60 mnts: $142, 91, £72
Sultan’s Royal Six-Hand Massage 50 mnts: $375, 240,£190 T: +90 (0) 212 334 44 44. www.ritzcarlton.com

Turkish Airlines: www.thy.com Reservations: 0844 800 6666 (from the UK)
Economy return to Istanbul from the UK (inc tax and charges prices may vary ): From Stansted $276, 177, £140; from Heathrow $393, 252,£199: Business return to Istanbul from (inc tax and charges) from Stansted $889, 570, £450; from Heathrow $966, 619,£489

Don’t Miss

Visit the Blue Mosque is famous for its slender minarets and blue tiles made by craftsmen from the town of Iznik. Afterwards walk through the gardens to Haghia Sophia another of the citys splendid mosques. Inside is a marvelous array of mosaics, friezes and more Isnik blue tile decorations. Spend the afternoon at Topkapi Palace which was home to Selim the Sot, who drowned in the bath after drinking too much champagne; Ibrahim the Mad, who lost his reason after being locked up for four years and Roxelana, consort of Süleyman the Magnificent. Must sees are the harem and the jewels.

The Spice Bazaar where you can buy all kinds of exotic foodstuffs including handmade Turkish Delight and the finest Persian saffron. Follow with lunch at Pandeli which is above the main waterside entrance to the market fantastic mezze including caviar, followed by aubergine pastry and steamed sea bass. There are three salons covered in stunning turquoise glazed tiles and on the walls are the photos of celebrities such as Audrey Hepburn, who have dined there over the years. Misir Çarşi 1, Eminönü, 36420. T: +90 (0)212 527 3909

The Grand Bazaar is a huge Ottoman shopping complex where you can buy everything from carpets, leather goods, to ceramics, jewellery and the finest pashminas.

There are bargains to be had but you must haggle. Buy beautiful diamonds and brown topaz earrings at Jewels Edel Kapaliçarşi Kalpakçilar Cad no 73. T+ 90 212 527 9797. Email akurtulmus@edeljewels.com

Topaz Restaurant & Bar This is a new restaurant, with walls of glass, perched on a hill in the Gurnussuyu district with spectacular views, particularly at night, of the city and the Bosphorus. Sophistictated Mediterranean and Turkish menu. T + 90 (0)212 249 1001. www.topazistanbul.com

Kanyon Shopping Mall

The place to buy designer labels. A modern shopping emporium with a Harvey Nichols store, and boutiques such as Dolce & Gabanna, Gucci and Banana Republic, Mango, Next and Max Mara www.kanyon.com.tr

Ismail Acars Gallery

One of Istanbuls most famous artists has a rather unusual gallery spread across several floors of a wooden house. Ismail works across several different mediums, incorporating traditional historical themes into contemporary works of art including portraits and even kaftans. He has exhibited in galleries in New York, London and Strasbourg. Karaköy, Lüleci Hendek Cad. No: 116/1 Beyoğlu. +90 (0) 212 252 03 88 Email: ismail@ismailacar.com.tr www.ismailacar.com.tr

Bosphorus cruise
hire a motor yacht with butler to see the waterside summer residences of the Ottoman aristocracy and foreign ambassadors built in the 17th,18th and 19th century. The rates for private boat tour (min. 2 hrs) on an 18-metre motor yacht accommodating 12 passengers starts from $780, 500, £395 (+18% VAT). $390, 250, £197 (+18% VAT) for each additional hour. Arrange through your hotel concierge.

Women witth fatter tums better able to deal with stress

Posted on December 6, 2008 by Editor

Salt Lake City: Women who have extra fat around their middle may enjoy significant health advantages over slimmer hourglass-shaped females, says a 37-nation study in the journal, Current Anthropology.

Elizabeth Cashdan, a Utah University anthropologist, says that being thinner could mean missing out on the hormones that make women physically stronger, more competitive and better able to deal with stress.

Her study shows that across the world, women’s average waist-to-hip ratio is higher than the magic number of 0.7, the upper threshold of a classic hourglass figure – and the shape that anthropologists believe indicate female fertility to the opposite sex.

It is thought that bigger women have more androgens, a class of hormones that includes testosterone.Androgens increase the waist-to-hip ratio in women by boosting levels of visceral fat, which is carried around the waist. Raised levels of androgens are linked to increased strength, stamina and competitiveness in women, says Cashdan.

Trading the benefits of a thin waist for better ability to be independently resourceful may prove a good deal in many societies, she adds – and this in turn may alter male preferences.

Thus, in Japan, Portugal and Greece, where women tend to be less economically independent, the men say they place a higher value on a thin waist than do men in Britain or Denmark, where there tends to be more sexual equality.

And in some non-Western societies where food is scarce and women bear most of the responsibility for finding it, men prefer larger waist-to-hip ratios.

Whether men prefer a waist-to-hip ratio associated with lower or higher androgen levels should depend on the degree to which they want their mates to be strong, tough, economically successful and politically competitive, says Cashdan .

Rejuvenate at the Royal Parks fitness festival

Posted on September 28, 2008 by Editor

London: From the stunning Serpentine through the green heart of London: The inaugural Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon and Brakes Food & Fitness Festival takes place next month.

On Sunday 12 October 2008 (8.30am to 4pm), the Royal Parks Foundation launches its first ever Half Marathon through the green lungs of the capital and will host the Brakes Food & Fitness Festival in Hyde Park to which entry is free.

12,500 runners will race over a 13.1 mile route that takes in all aspects of our diverse and colourful city and passes through King Henry VIIIs old hunting grounds. Starting in the autumn colours of Hyde Park, the route goes through Green Park and St Jamess Park, along the ancient Thames, past the futuristic London Eye, back to the historic Albert Memorial in Kensington Gardens, finishing once again in Hyde Park. Runners will then be able to join friends and family and rejuvenate at the Brakes Food & Fitness Festival taking place all day in Hyde Park.

The Brakes Food & Fitness Festival will offer something for everyone runners and non-runners alike. Activities throughout the day will include:

· Warm up with the British Military Fitness team at 9.30am

· SUPERChick stretch workshop for tired muscles

· Learn to be a Parkour – (think James Bond in the opening scenes of Casino Royale)

· Kids craft area with face-painting and lots of other free fun

· Tennis skills training, plus hockey and football challenges with a giant inflatable football goal and speed camera

· Army climbing wall

· Massage area

· Farmers market stalls for those who would rather just relax and enjoy some delicious food

Echoing the ethos of the Royal Parks, the Half Marathon aims to be as environmentally friendly as possible with bamboo t-shirts, medals carved from sustainable pine, recycled water bottles and a Fairtrade banana for every runner. Funds raised will benefit The Royal Parks Foundation, plus the work of hundreds of other charities, large and small, from around the UK.

In keeping with the something for everyone theme, there are a variety of prize categories for runners including:

Open Men
Open Women
Senior Women 40-55 year olds
Senior Men 45-60 year olds
Veteran Women 55+
Veteran Men 60+
Corporate Challenge (Fastest Team & Best Dressed Team)
Most Successful Fundraiser

Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon timings:

· 8.30 – Runners should arrive at 8.30 to check in bags

· 9.30 – British Military Fitness warm up

· 10.00 – Run starts in Hyde Park

· Brakes Food & Fitness Festival open between 8.30am-4pm

The Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon

· The Royal Parks Foundation is the charity for London’s eight Royal Parks. For further information please visit: www.royalparksfoundation or visit The Royal Parks at www.royalparks.org.uk

Headline sponsor

· Brakes – Brakes is the headline partner for the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon and is the UKs leading foodservice providerwww.brake.co.uk

INFLAMMATION & AGEING

Posted on September 12, 2008 by Editor

Does TV violence make you eat more?

Posted on July 11, 2008 by Editor

Rotterdam: TV violence triggers an increase in hunger, according to new research.

According to Dirk Smeesters, Associate Professor of Marketing at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, people who are thinking about their own deaths want to consume more.

In a paper published in the Journal of Consumer Research, The Sweet Escape: Effects of Mortality Salience on Consumption Quantities for High- and Low-Self-Esteem Consumers, Dirk Smeesters and co-author Naomi Mandel (Arizona State University) reveal that consumers, especially those with a faced with images of death during the news or their favorite crime-scene investigation shows.

Smeesters and Mandel conducted experiments in Europe and the United States on 746 subjects who wrote either about their own death or a visit to the dentist (the control group). The findings revealed that consumers with low self-esteem writing about their death ate more cookies and listed more items on a hypothetical shopping list compared to those who wrote about the dentist. Similar effects were obtained by subliminally presenting the word death to consumers and exposing them to death-related news.

Smeesters and Mandel explain this effect using a theory called escape from self-awareness. When people are reminded of their inevitable mortality, they may start to feel uncomfortable about what they have done with their lives and whether they have made a significant mark on the universe. This is a state called heightened self-awareness. One way to deal with such an uncomfortable state is to escape from it, by either overeating or overspending.

Follow-up research found that death-related news can not only increase consumers consumption behavior, but can also affect their preferences for domestic and foreign brands. More specifically, consumers who were exposed to death-related news (e.g. a news report about a fatal car crash) had more positive preferences for domestic brands, but more negative preferences for foreign brands compared to consumers not exposed to such news.

These effects were obtained because thinking about death made consumers more patriotic. These studies clearly demonstrated the potential negative effects of advertising foreign brands shortly after the broadcast of death-related programs on television.

About Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University

RSM is an internationally top-ranked business school renowned for its ground-breaking research in sustainable business practice and for the development of leaders in global business. Offering an array of bachelor, master, doctoral, MBA and executive education programmes, RSM is consistently ranked amongst the top 10 business schools in Europe. < a href="http://www.rsm.nl">www.rsm.nl

Recipes to watch the Baftas – from Rosemount

Posted on April 4, 2008 by Editor

Oversized socks, comfy tracksuit bottoms and something good on the box all thats needed now for the ultimate night in is a quick, easy and delicious recipe which will transform TV dinners once and for all and a glass of wine to finish off in style.

As the official wine of this years star studded BAFTA TV Awards, leading Australian wine Rosemount has teamed up with food writer and TV cook Jo Pratt to offer just this three deliciously mouth watering recipes to tempt you back onto the couch for a much needed night in. So get ready to warm up with some cosy food, snuggle down and watch the awards from the comfort of your own home.

Acclaimed chef Jo Pratt admits that sometimes some of the best food can be the simplest: There is a great pressure these days for people to produce fussier and more complex dishes but often it is the easiest and most straight forward recipes that are still winners! Of course it is always fun to put your chefs hat on once in a while but when it comes to a relaxing night in the majority of us prefer fresh ingredients, minimum effort and maximum taste!

And if you are looking for a top tipple to complete the ultimate TV dinner night in package then Rosemounts James Craig-Wood is on board to ensure there is something to suit everyones taste.

OH SO SIMPLE CHICKEN, LEEK AND HAM PIES

This is for those times when you rush through the supermarket on your way home and get a whiff of roasting chickens from the rotisserie counter.
Perhaps you usually dont get one because you cant be bothered to do all the trimmings roast potatoes, gravy and veggies or because you feel like something more substantial than a hot chicken sandwich or salad. So why not make use of one to fill a puff pastry-topped pie that will take no time at all to put together.

Takes about 35 minutes to make

makes one large or four individual pies

25g butter

2 smallmedium leeks, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon thyme leaves

100ml sherry or white wine

200ml double cream

1 large ready-roasted chicken

150200g piece of ham, cut into bite-sized chunks

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

100ml chicken stock

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tablespoon milk, to glaze

375g ready-rolled puff pastry

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/fan 180ºC/gas 6.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan and gently cook the leek and thyme leaves until the leek has softened. Increase the heat, pour in the sherry and cream and bubble for a couple of minutes to thicken a little.

Take the chicken meat off the bone and tear into chunks or strips. Add to the pan with the ham, mustard and chicken stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly.

Spoon into one large or four individual pie dishes. Brush the rim of each dish with the egg wash, cut the pastry into four (or leave whole if you are doing one large pie) and sit on top. Press the edges down well to seal and trim off any excess pastry. Cut a small slit in the top to let any steam escape and brush with the egg wash.

Bake for 15 minutes until the tops are golden and the sauce begins to ooze out of the dishes. Serve straight away.

If you cant get a ready-roasted chicken, then you can cook chopped breast or leg meat in the pan before adding the leek.

Recommended wine: Diamond Label Chardonnay – The Chardonnay is a classic match for chicken dishes, the crisp acidity and ripe fruitiness will complement the creamy sauce.

CORNER SHOP CURRY

Just about everyone has a corner shop within walking distance. Theyre great in an emergency because they stock all sorts of useful ingredients.
This curry is so lovely its hard to believe its made from such basic everyday ingredients. The vegetables I have suggested are just a guide, so if your corner shop doesnt have some of them, just change the selection to suit whatever you can find.

takes about 50 minutes to make (most of which is cooking time)

serves four

2 tablespoons sunflower or vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

23 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

2 carrots, cut into chunks

1 green or red pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks

3 tablespoons mild, medium or hot curry powder

400g tin of chopped tomatoes

200ml vegetable stock

juice of 1/2 lemon

400g tin of chickpeas, drained

4 tablespoons natural yoghurt or cream

sea salt

Heat the oil in a saucepan and gently fry the onion until it has softened.
Add the garlic, potato, carrot, pepper and curry powder. Cook for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are just starting to soften and become golden.
Stir in the tomatoes, stock and lemon juice, bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

Stir in the chickpeas and continue to cook for a further 5 minutes for the chickpeas to heat through.

By now the vegetables should be tender and the sauce thick. Stir in the yoghurt or cream and season with salt. Serve with rice, naan bread or whatever you fancy.

If your corner shop sells it, coconut milk or coconut cream can be used instead of the natural yoghurt or cream, while a small tin of drained pineapple chunks adds a delicious fruity flavour.

The curry also benefits from a few fresh herbs, so if you have any coriander or parsley, stir it into the curry at the end.

Recommended wine: Diamond Label Shiraz – The spiciness and intense dark fruit flavours of the Diamond Label Shiraz are a great match for curries

OVEN-BAKED SALMON AND PEA RISOTTO

Are you in the mood for a risotto, but quite frankly cant be bothered to stand and stir it for twenty minutes? Well, this is a sort of cheats risotto that could be perfect for you. It also doubles up as a storecupboard saviour because it uses mostly storecupboard ingredients, making it perfect for an easy-to-prepare, last-minute dinner emergency.

takes about 40 minutes to make

serves four

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

300g risotto rice

1 litre chicken or vegetable stock

grated zest of 1 lemon

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

300g tin of mushy peas (yes, you did read that right!)

400g tin of pink or red salmon, drained and large bones removed

2 tablespoons chopped dill, mint, chives, basil or parsley (or a
mixture of a few)

50g butter

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/fan 180ºC/gas 6.

Heat the olive oil in an ovenproof dish or casserole and gently fry the onion until softened. Stir in the rice, stock and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a gentle simmer. Cover with a lid and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

By now the rice should be tender. The risotto might seem quite runny, but thats fine at this stage. Stir in the mushy peas and salmon and return to the oven for 5 minutes.

Take the risotto out of the oven and mix in the herbs and butter. Stir for about 2 minutes to thicken the risotto before serving.

For an extra creamy finish, stir in a couple of spoonfuls of mascarpone or cream cheese with the butter

Recommended wine: Diamond Cellars Semillon Chardonnay – The citrus fruit characters which Semillon is known for go well with salmon and will bring out the lemon zest and the body and richness which the Chardonnay adds will balance the richness of the creamy risotto

So rustle up one of these delicious dishes, grab a glass of Rosemount wine and prepare to indulge yourself in front of the TV. Rosemount wine has not only seen the introduction of screw caps across the entire range but the brand has gone back to its distinctive style of fresh bright wines and superior wine quality with a focus on intense fruit flavours.

Rosemount wines are available at your local supermarket. The Diamond Cellars range start from £6.49 and the Diamond Label range £7.99. For more information on the range visit www.rosemountestate.co.uk or call 020 8843 8411.

Rejuvenate your life with La Dolce Vita

Posted on March 10, 2008 by Editor

Ahh Italy, they really do have the best of everything. Fabulous fashion, top designers, fast cars, beautiful weather and of course delicious cuisine The La Dolce Vita with Viva Italia festival, coming to London’s Olympic exhibition centre from the 13th-16th of March is a celebration of all things Italian and will give you an insight into just how inspirational Italy is.

So if you fancy adding some Italian chic to your wardrobe, learning the secrets to the mouth watering Mediterranean diet & how to add a touch of Italian flair to your lifestyle then why not come along to experience the true taste of Italy?

Check out this video featuring Italy’s very own Aldo Zilli to see what’s in store
La Dolce Vita

Fast food harms the liver

Posted on February 14, 2008 by Editor

Too much fast food and too little exercise can harm the liver in just one month, research suggests.

A small study found that people who ate junk food twice a day experienced varying degrees of damage to their liver.

They also put on large amounts of weight in a relatively short amount of time.

Twelve men and six women – 17 of whom were students – were recruited for the study, published online in the journal Gut.

They were all healthy and slim, but for the study they ate at least two fast food meals a day, preferably from well-known fast food restaurants.

Exercise was also restricted to under 5,000 steps per day each.

Blood samples were taken at the start of the study, two weeks into the study and after four weeks.

Participants were urged to greatly increase their daily calorie intake, and only stopped the trial early if they gained 15% in weight.

Another group ate a normal healthy diet and acted as controls.

Gastromonic nirvana at the Real Food Festival

Posted on January 8, 2008 by Editor

Learn about how Trappist monasteries produce beer, sample rare European cured meats, including prosciutto from the Lombardian Alps in the far north of Italy. Try speciality sausage from the province of Ragusa in Sicily. Explore honey-based beverages, such as traditional aged Polish mead made from honey and sweet Ethiopian honey beer and more at the Real Food Festival in London this April.

Challenge the senses with Scotlands best cask aged whiskies under the guidance of whisky expert Peter Gibson and meet the Chedderman, Tom Calver of Westcombe Dairy in Somerset, to hear about how his farm is protecting its farming heritage and the traditional methods of cheese production. Come along to a delicious magazine Taste Workshop at the Real Food Festival at Londons Earls Court 24-27 April.

Real Food will showcase hundreds of the most passionate producers that have been handpicked by a careful Selection Committee and subsidised to be there. One of the major highlights of the festival will be delicious magazine Taste Workshops, created by eco-gastronomes Clodagh McKenna and Sebastiano Sardo from Foodiscovery, where you can meet producers personally and take part in tutored tastings which will leave your toes tingling! There will be over 85 different delicious magazine Taste Workshops at the festival which have been categorised into distinct groups including: Meet the Producer, Discover Europe, Undiscovered Food and Gastronomic Nirvana.

Meet the Producer:

Meet the Producer workshops will include British cheese makers speaking of the challenges of producing raw milk cheese in a pasteurized world, Italian winemakers speaking of the impact of the climate and geography of their territorio on their products flavours and British farmers presenting sustainably-produced meat from heritage breeds.

Highlights will include:

Patchwork PatésThe Incredible Success of Patchwork Patés featuring Margaret Carter: In 1982, Margaret Carter, divorced with three children to raise, began making paté in her kitchen. Her start up costs were £9.00. Today, Patchwork produces eight award winning patés and is one of the UKs top paté producers. Despite the commercial success the patés are still hand made using Margarets original recipes with no additives or preservatives. Come and meet Margaret Carter and hear the story of how she made it happen.

The Cocoa Farm Meet the Chocolate Lovers. The Cocoa Farm (the only one in Australia) is run by a group of people so passionate about truly great chocolate they grow their own cocoa beans and make it themselves. They are obsessed with sourcing only the finest ingredients and treat them gently, interfering in the process as little as possible.

Discover Europe:This gastronomic tour of farmers, growers and artisan producers will take us from the tip of Italy to the temperate South of Sweden, sampling and learning about the best of artisans regional produce. Discover Europe workshops include:

Portuguese Sheep-milk cheeses paired with aged Port: The Iberian peninsula is noted for producing some of the worlds greatest sheeps milk cheeses and the Portuguese gourmet cheeses can certainly hold their own with their Spanish cousins. Come and try the salty, fruity Quieijo de Evora, matured for at least sixty days; the strong earthy Azeitao, or the semi hard Queijo de Nisa which uses thistle flower for coagulation. These Portuguese greats will be paired with aged Port wines from the Douros best vintners.

Undiscovered Foods: The aim of this workshop is to turn the spotlight on food, sourced from all over Europe which is rarely found outside the region it is produced in. Sampling and discussing products as diverse as Hebriddean cheeses, rare breed air dried beef, small independent wine producers, honey made from bees kept on London roof tops or smoked tuna from Connemara. Undiscovered Foods workshops will include:

California Charcuterie & Artisan Beers: The New Worlds Mediterranean the long Pacific coast stretching along California into Mexico is home to a climate that favours fruit trees and vegetable crops originating in Southern Europe. Today, Northern California is also proving to be a favourable climate for some of the artisan foodways native to Europe.

Gastronomic NirvanaIn Gastronomic Nirvana workshops well attempt to define how and why certain foods have earned the gourmands devotion and gold plated reputations: a teaspoon of the purest caviar followed by a mouthful of melting crème fraiche, aged Spanish Iberico ham made from acorn-fed pork, or a crumbling shard of 3-year old Grana Padano cheese with a chaser of 25 year aged Aceto Balsamico di Modena. Gastronomic Nirvana workshops include:

The Ultimate Cure: an opportunity to taste two of the finest cured meats in the world, Culatello and Iberico ham. You will hear the history of these two great cured meats and learn about the traditional methods of production. Iberico ham, from Northern Spain, has a nutty flavour from the acorns the black pigs are fed on and Culatello, from the Po valley in Italy, is a sweet, intense and clean tasting ham.

Oyster Haven: In this workshop we compare the flavours of the finest French oysters; flavourful Belon oysters from Brittany; Marennes from the Charentais coast and Fines De Claire so called for their incredible clarity. The oysters will be coupled with expertly chosen champagnes or chilled Muscadet. This will be a day of pure indulgence for any serious gastronome …or seducer.

To find out more information on the Real Food Festival or to purchase tickets please call our hotline 0870 912 0831 or visit www.realfoodfestival.co.uk

The Real Food Festival is unique because:

A Selection Committee chaired by Lyndon Gee, former director of Slow Food UK, will select producers to ensure a high degree of integrity and quality for the event.
Small producers are being subsidised to participate, offering them a real opportunity to grow and develop their business thanks to our generous sustainers which include Whole Foods Market, Tyrells, Grana Padano and Daylesford Organics.

The festival will showcase hundreds of producers that have never been seen before at any large scale food and drink event, offering an unprecedented variety of great quality produce that has made the grade in terms of taste, provenance and sustainability.
The Real Food Festival is both a trade and consumer event, giving stakeholders the chance to reach both audiences.
Many of the producers will have not been seen before making Real Food a festival of discovery celebrating provenance, sustainability, quality and integrity in food and food producers.

The visitor experience will include:

The Food Market the biggest Farmers Market the UKs ever seen. The Wine Fair Over 100 small producers of quality wines will be selected to offer their wines for tasting and to buy. Delicious magazine Taste Workshops created by Clodagh McKenna and Sebastiano Sardo from Food Discovery, you can meet the producer personally and have tutored tastings on the things you love or always wanted to try. Cookery School Our sustainable food guru, Barny Haughton, from Bordeaux Quay, Bristol, will be running a Cookery School where you can learn to make the simplest things like a loaf of bread. Chefs Theatre The Chefs Theatre will stimulate the taste buds with presentations from some of the UKs top chefs using seasonal and fresh produce to prepare regional dishes. Restaurants A small selection of the UKs most exciting and forward-thinking restaurants will serve signature dishes. Gala Night A high profile Gala launch night will be organised for Thursday evening, 24 April 2008. Dinner Dates Why stop at the event? Head to one of Londons Dinner Date restaurants and eat from a menu specially prepared for the Real Food Festival.

Real Food Festival, London 24-27 April

Posted on January 5, 2008 by Editor

London: Weve hand-picked the very best produce and ingredients that we could find to bring you the biggest Farmers Market in the country and you, being as passionate about produce as we are, should come and meet some of the best producers, taste their delectable produce, learn from them and challenge your tastebuds.

Over 500 producers will gather at Earls Court 24-7 April 2008 to celebrate food that is good, clean and fair. With all the talk about the integrity, quality, provenance & sustainability of food in the UK and around the world, we thought it would be a great idea to show you the choices that are out there.

The big difference with the Real Food Festival is that the producers that are hand picked to attend are also heavily subsidised to exhibit. This means that you will get the opportunity to meet some of the best and smallest producers in the world and eat some of the most fabulous food that will leave your mouth watering and your toes tingling!

As well as the amazing producers, you will also be able to learn how to bake bread with food guru Barny Haughton of Bristols renowned Bordeaux Quay, taste wines with the maker, challenge yourself in a food debate, tantalise your tastebuds in a taste workshops, meet some pigs, follow a produce trail or just chill on a hay bale and listen to a farmers story. Real Food is passionate not preachy, the integrity of the festival will challenge the way most of us think about food on a day to day basis and will inspire a wide audience to change their eating habits in favour of a more sustainable way of eating and enjoying produce.

The Festivals Taste workshops will teach you all sorts of things from the differences between cows and goats milk to wheat and malt beers. The workshops provide the ultimate test for your taste buds, created by eco-gastronomes Clodagh McKenna and Sebastiano Sardo of Foodiscovery.

The Real Food Festival is not just a London event. We have just returned from a gastronomic road trip around the country where we have been meeting local producers, from Jersey to Orkney. You will be able to meet the people who reared the pigs, planted the carrots, milked the cows and crushed the grapes: you can taste their produce, learn about it and take it home.

Eco Icons such as Zac Goldsmith, fully support our festival, The way we eat, what we eat, where our food comes from, these are central issues. The Real Food Festival will change the way we think about food and give producers and consumers an opportunity to meet and share their passion for authentic quality produce.

We promise to celebrate the diversity of modern artisan food, from producer to plate. Visitors will be able to meet and speak to 500 hand-picked producers from Britain and the world.

Visit our website The Real Food Festival to get updates of our journey. Tickets which can be bought online cost £15.

The Vitality Show – Olympia London 27-30 March 2008

Posted on January 5, 2008 by Editor

London: Experience the latest health, beauty & well-being innovations all under one roof!

For the latest trends in health, beauty and well-being in 2008, why not book yourself and your best friend tickets for the ultimate girls day out, The Vitality Show with Muller ®? Jam-packed with lots of great brands, experiential show features and experts all under one roof, The Vitality Show is the must go event for women in the UK.

Brands such as Dermalogica, Benefit Cosmetics and Aveda will be showcasing the very latest innovations, products and ideas enabling women to get a sneak preview of whats hot and whats not for 2008. Not only a great shopping event, with loads of great brands all together the shows new experiential features include: The Happiness Theatre where visitors can attend happiness and friendship workshops; The Fitness Arena complete with trampolines for visitors to try out, free hair consultations and styling courtesy of the award winning Hobs Salon and the Luxury Beauty Hall; as well as the ever popular fabulous Fashion Catwalk.

World class experts will also be on hand to offer advice and insights across the world of health, beauty and well-being ensuring visitors to the show can pick up hot tips to take home and share with their friends.

The Vitality Show with Muller®, is Europes largest health, beauty and well-being show is back bigger and better than ever.

For a day packed with the latest and best in beauty, health and well-being, as well as inspirational advice, secrets, hints and tips from the experts, make The Vitality Show 2008 top of yours and your best friends diary!

Tickets to the show cost £17 on the door or £14 in advance. For further information visit the website www.thevitalityshow.co.uk or book your tickets by calling 0844 415 4416 (within the UK).

Experience the latest advances in anti-ageing at the THE VITALITY SHOW 2008

Posted on December 18, 2007 by Editor

London: Experience the latest health, beauty & well-being innovations all under one roof! Olympia March 27-30 2008.

The Vitality Show with Muller®, is Europes largest health, beauty and well-being show is back bigger and better than ever.

Tickets to the show cost £17 on the door or £14 in advance. For further information visit the website www.thevitalityshow.co.uk or book your tickets by calling 0844 415 4416 (within the UK).

Nosh Detox – bespoke food delivery within the M25 area only

Posted on December 3, 2007 by Editor

10% off

Email: info@noshdetoxdelivery.com T: 0845 2576674
Web site www.noshdetoxdelivery.com

· Put on extra pounds that just wont shift?
· Feeling lethargic and low?
· Post-pregnancy weight and no time to spend on yourself?
· Too tired after work to cook and eat properly?

Then Natural Organic Safe and Healthy is for you

At last, innovative company, Nosh has created a unique service that delivers nutritious and appetising organic, dairy and gluten free meals direct to your door.

Eating healthy, delicious meals and getting in shape, all become much easier when you have a dedicated chef working for you. No longer just the preserve of stars and the super rich, Noshs highly trained chefs specialise in a variety of international cuisines and use only the highest standards of fresh, organic produce to create delicious, dairy and gluten free meals tailored to your lifestyle.

And its all so easy! Every morning Nosh will deliver specially prepared gourmet meals and snacks, for both you and your family that will both delight your taste buds and satisfy your dietary needs. So whether your aim is weight-loss, detox, or simply a long needed energy boost, you can forget recipe books and supermarkets, and concentrate on enjoying all your new found free time.

Brainchild of Geeta Sidhu-Robb, author of the best selling, Food for All: Gluten, Diary, Egg and Nut Free Cookbook, Nosh was founded in 2005, initially providing healthy food for babies and children. Geetas own son was diagnosed with anaphylaxis as a baby and went on to develop multiple food allergies, leading Geeta to retrain as a food technician with a mission to educate people in correct eating patterns and the benefits of a balanced diet.

Nosh is based in Chelsea and caters for customers within the M25 area of Greater London. At £39 Nosh is the only food delivery service that guarantees its customers organic diary and gluten free food and you can taste the difference.
info@noshdetoxdelivery.com T: 0845 2576674
Website: www.noshdetoxdelivery.com

Eat your way to health with green cuisine

Posted on November 15, 2007 by Editor

London In the beautiful, tranquil surroundings of Penrhos Court, a Herefordshire manor farm on the Welsh borders, award-winning author, chef and nutritionist, Daphne Lambert, has run Greencuisine organic food, vitality and health courses for over 15 years.

Greencuisine offers a range of practical nutrition-based cookery courses using locally grown organic foods. Run in small groups and led by qualified practitioners- all who have many years of experience of helping people to achieve optimum health Greencuisine courses provide hands-on tuition in the kitchen and individual nutritional advice, as well as daily Yoga classes, massage and gentle walks in the local countryside.

Greencuisine cookery courses are designed to revive and rejuvenate while enabling participants to see the joy of food and ways in which our diet directly affects health. Owner and Leading Nutritionist, Daphne Lambert, believes that we are what we eat and that the foods we choose have a significant effect on our health and wellbeing.

Daphne Lambert says: With over 25% of British adults now obese and cases of type 2 diabetes, stroke, heart disease and cancer on the increase¹, there is an immediate need to re-evaluate our diets and re-educate ourselves about the ways in which the food we eat affects our health.

In Britain today, one in three adults dies of heart disease² and a quarter of us die from cancer related deaths caused by unhealthy diet³. As a nation we have lost a significant level of understanding and knowledge about how we think about and prepare food. Our courses are designed to provide practical health advice from qualified practitioners as well as hands-on sessions in the kitchen learning to prepare nutritious organic food that can be easily made at home.

All Greencuisine cookery courses are residential, fully catered and all diets catered for and foods included. Take-home cookery and health food course notes are provided to enable attendees to integrate what they have learnt into their everyday lifestyle.

Greencuisine Cookery Courses:

Food and Health £605 five day course

An essential course for everybody who wants to understand more about the food they eat and the impact it has on our health and on the body. Learn how to prepare a wide selection of organic, fresh, seasonal food with expert advice from Daphne Lambert on maximising nutritional value. Discover the importance of whole foods, the benefits of juicing, understand the digestive system and take part in daily Yoga classes. This course is booking now for corporate team building days.

Womens Health £350 two day course

A long-established, two day course developed exclusively for women and centred on foods that promote vitality and health. Includes daily yoga classes and time spent in the kitchen learning to create a range of delicious and nutritious dishes such as sushi, almond, date and banana torte, cranberry and banana smoothie and hemp cheese.

Womens Health £699 five day course

The 5 day version of the WHC offers a more in depth combination of hands on cooking, diet awareness, nutrition, yoga and massage with Daphne Lambert, Sue Pembrey and Belinda Jobst. Plenty of time is spent in the kitchen creating dishes to help give health and vitality.

Living Nutrition £1,400 four weekends one in each season

Now in its fifth year, Living Nutrition is an annual course run by Daphne Lambert and Dragana Vilinac exploring the relationship between the food we eat and our health and vitality. Learn practical skills for optimising health through cooking, understand how to make informed decisions about the food you buy and the environmental impact food production can have, develop an insight into Traditional Chinese Medicine and gain an understanding of how your body works and your own individual nutritional needs.

A Feast for the Soul £550 weekend course

A Feast for the Soul is a journey of self discovery through the preparation and sharing of food. This enlightening and popular course is run by Daphne Lambert and Jonathan Snell both whom use their vast experience to demonstrate how food choices in our diet should not be based purely only on the physical but should embrace philosophical, emotional and spiritual perspectives. Jonathan is an expert in the phsychology of belief and behaviour and the physiology of movement and psycho-physical integration. The course involves lots of time spent in the kitchen and is built around discussions about our beliefs and understandings of food including reference to food stories, tales and legends.

Greencuisine also offers gift tokens that can be used to purchase any Greencuisine course. For further information or to book a place on a course visit www.greencuisine.org or call 01544 230720.

Real food shock – at London festival

Posted on November 9, 2007 by Editor

We promise to celebrate the diversity of modern artisan food, from producer to plate. Visitors will be able to meet and speak to 500 hand-picked producers from Britain and the world.

Visit our website The Real Food Festival to get updates of our journey. Tickets which can be bought online cost £15.

Food additives do make children behave badly – new study

Posted on September 7, 2007 by Editor

London: The UK Government’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) has confirmed fears that artificial colours in children’s foods can make them behave badly.

The FSA tested a range of E-numbers on two groups of children and discovered that youngsters found it more difficult to sit still and concentrate, had problems reading and became loud and impulsive. The additives tested are commonly used in the sweets, biscuits, soft drinks and ice cream consumed by millions of British children. But the FSA will not order a ban on them.

The research was carried out by scientists from the UK’s Southampton University and involved almost 300 children published in the medical journal The Lancet.

The children in the six-week Southampton trial were split into two groups – one of 153 three-year-olds and the other of 144 eight and nine-year-olds.

The additives tested were tartrazine (E102), ponceau 4R (E124), sunset yellow (E110), carmoisine (E122), quinoline yellow (E104) and allura red AC (E129). and the preservative sodium benzoate, commonly found in soft drinks.

Initially, all the children were changed to diets that did not include artificial additives to set a benchmark.

They were then given daily fruit juice drinks, In some weeks, these contained a mixture of additives, in others they were pure.

The children’s behaviour was monitored by parents, teachers and independent observers.

None of the participants in the study knew what drinks the children were receiving, to ensure the results were not skewed.

In both groups, children were more hyperactive in the weeks they consumed a cocktail of additives.

One of the additive mixes, designed to mimic what a child might be expected to consume in one day, produced what the scientists believe was a ‘significant’ change in behaviour in the older children.

The other mix produced a more profound response in the younger group.

Professor Jim Stevenson, who led the research, said: “We now have clear evidence that mixtures of certain food colours and benzoate preservative can adversely influence the behaviour of children.”

Nagging health questions answered on new UK government site

Posted on August 19, 2007 by Editor

London: Got a nagging question about your health? Are you planning a new fitness regime or are you interested in finding out more about a particular condition and relevant treatment options? If you are looking for reliable, personalised information about your health and lifestyle you can now find it at the new website, NHS Choices www.nhs.uk

Health advice is now the second most searched for subject online so it is no surprise that there is a lot of information of variable quality out there.
NHS Choices is a one-stop shop for all your health information that you can trust and that puts you in charge of decisions about your own health, lifestyle and even treatment options.

See how fit and healthy you are with a quick and easy personal health check and watch short movies from the experts and real people about their experiences of common conditions and treatments. Read honest accounts of how celebrities such as Steve Redgrave, Tricia Goddard, Rosemary Conley and Nik Powell, Richard Bransons co-founder of Virgin Records have overcome their own health problems. You can even become an expert with access to information only previously available to the medical profession.

Get motivated and take inspiration for a healthy life from Live Well, a series of online magazines featuring up to date articles, short movies and celebrity contributions to appeal to different groups such as women, teenagers, men and families.

Get great ideas for healthy eating with recipes from Emma Bunton, Nadine Coyle, Dannii Minogue and Myleene Klass and watch celebrity chefs cook up simple, healthy meals for the whole family and romantic nights in.

Find inspiration for a fitness regime that works for your age and lifestyle. Get active and take the Chelsea FC challenge, try walking your way to fitness and a great pair of legs or read how Olympic sprinter, Linford Christie has managed to stay fit and lean post retirement and post forty.

Learn our how to stay happy and healthy at work and see what the experts have to say about a mid life crisis. Is your urge for a newer model – car or woman due to brain or hormone changes or just bad behaviour.

Should you need to go to hospital NHS Choices gives you the information to make an informed decision about where and when you want to be treated. View ratings on hospital waiting times, cleanliness and readmission figures and for the first time what previous patients have to say about their treatment and experiences via immediate online feedback.

It is even possible for you to make your choice of hospital based upon personal preferences such as travelling times, MRSA incidences and availability of single sex wards.

Background:
1. The NHS Choices website draws on the combined experience and expertise of NHS.uk, NHS Direct, the National Electronic Library for Health, and the Healthcare Commission.

2. NHS Choices can be found at www.nhs.uk The site will continue to evolve and significant extensions are scheduled for later in 2007 and 2008.

3. The site will allow patients to access NHS approved information using a number of features under distinct headings:

Live Well
Information that will help the well to stay fit and assist those who are unwell to manage their condition

Magazine content will reflect the interests and needs of different groups such as teenagers, families and those over 70

Health A-Z
Access to a vast library of approved medical literature, previously only available to clinicians to enable a deeper understanding of conditions & treatment options
Easy to understand multi-media guides on the most common procedures e.g. hip replacement
Detailed guides to living with 20 long-term conditions such as diabetes to help patients manage their condition. Expert opinions from professionals and patients will provide advice and support

Choose Services
Authoritative, comparative data on the standards and availability of services
Searchable comprehensive directories e.g. on hospitals, GPs and care homes
A quality scorecard that will help patients and GPs together to identify the most appropriate clinicians and locations for their treatment

Your Thoughts
Patients will be able to directly comment and feedback on their hospital experience
All comments will be pre-moderated and references to named individuals will be removed
Hospitals will have the opportunity to respond to comments about their services.

Diet and Nutrition – Martha Roberts

Posted on March 19, 2007 by Editor

Martha Roberts DIP ION is a qualified nutrional therapist and an award-winning health journalist.

To find out more visit www.martharoberts.co.uk or to ask about your diet and nutrition concerns email her at Martha Roberts

Food Manufacturers tell fibs say British public

Posted on November 23, 2006 by Editor

London Four out of five British people don’t trust food manufacturers to tell the truth, according to new research from Kettle® Chips.

In response, KETTLE has teamed up with Essex farmer and star of the BBC’s Jimmy’s Farm – Jimmy Doherty, to call for more honesty and quality in the food industry.

Of the thousand people surveyed:

78% said they didn’t trust manufacturers to always tell the truth about how food was produced

70% say they now always check food labels before buying – the main areas for
concern being calorie/fat/sugar levels (55.2%), artificial additives (48.2%), and to make sure all ingredients are real (18.4%)

Half the population have now made a conscious decision to cut artificial ingredients from their diets

Two thirds are happy to pay extra for food made from real ingredients, showing a real reversal from the price-focused shopper of old 20% of British households buy food at Farmers’ Markets (this figure has doubled since the 1980’s)

People in their forties and fifties are 75% more likely to shop at Farmers Markets than people in their twenties

Farmer Jimmy Doherty, star of hit BBC show Jimmy’s Farm comments:

“It’s becoming clear that the British public has had enough and are not prepared to take their food at face value anymore. Clear labelling and honest communications are vital if food manufactures want to rebuild this trust. Producing high quality food, with a traceable, transparent chain is my passion and it’s great to see shoppers supporting companies who take quality ingredients seriously.”

The news that almost 80% of people don’t believe manufacturers are always honest about their food is shocking, but it may indicate why Kettle® Chips are still the UK’s favourite hand cooked chips. Since the company started in the UK in 1988, it has only ever used 100% natural ingredients in all of their products.

Jeremy Bradle, Managing Director at Kettle® Chips (pictured right) comments:
“Kettle Foods was started by a guy who believed there may be a group of people who would want snacks that were made with a greater degree of care, tasted better and contained absolutely no artificial ingredients. Although it was always going to be a tougher route to follow, he also wanted us to know where the ingredients came from and to be honest with people about what was in the food we sold. We’ve been working at that ambition for 27 years now. Looking at the results of the survey, it seems food manufactures need to try harder than ever to earn the right to consumers trust and that Cameron’s* original hunch is more relevant today than it’s ever been.”

*Cameron Healy, founder of Kettle Foods

Regional Statistics
· People from West Midlands are the most trusting. Only 26.9% say they don’t think food manufacturers are always honest about how their food is made. Compare this with the Northwest of the country, where the figure was 95%!
· People in the South We! st of th e country are much more likely to visit Farmer’s Markets for their food 50%, compared to 20.8% for the country as a whole.
· Londoners shop organically more than people from any other area (34.4%). The further north you go, the less likely you are to find an organic shopper (Yorkshire 15.7%, North East 12.8%, Scotland 6.7%).

Kettle Survey: Key Statistics
· Forty two percent of household shoppers check where food has come from before they buy.
· Almost a quarter of households shop organically (only 3 percent say this was something they did in the 1980s).
· Twenty percent of British households buy food at Farmers Markets (only half of that number did in the 1980s)
· Around four out of five people say they sometimes feel food manufacturers aren’t entirely honest about how food is produced.
· Seventy two percent want to know if there are any additives or preservatives in their food.
· Almost two thirds are willing to pay a bit more for food that is made from real ingredients.
· Almost half of people have made a conscious decision to try to cut out anything artificial from their diet.
· Less than three out of ten people believe that if you want healthier food, you tend to have to compromise on taste.
· Seven out of ten people check the label on food products before buying. People check for a variety of things, including artificial additives (48.2%), calorie/fat/sugar content (55.2%), and to make sure ingredients are real (18.4%).
· Not surprisingly, women are more likely to check labels for fat, sugar and calorie content, but the gap isn’t as big as you might think 45.2% of men will check for these, compared to 60.2% of women.
· People in their forties and fifties are 75% more likely to shop at a Farmer’s Market than people in their twenties and thirties.
· When asked to guess how many dif! ferent t ypes of potato are in the world, guesses ranged from one to one thousand. The average guess was 16 (there are over 4,000).

1. A total of 998 face-to-face interviews were carried out by research firm Kember Associates, with consumers who claimed to shop regularly for food for themselves and/or their families. The interviews were carried out in major high streets throughout the country during June 2006.
2. In the event exact figures aren’t quoted, these are available from the above contacts.

ELIXIR

THE WORLD'S NUMBER 1 HEALTHY AGEING MAGAZINE

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