Features

Nutrition labels on food are designed to make it easier to achieve a healthy diet, but with two systems in use, which is the most helpful? By Juliette Kellow.

Spot the difference

Nutrition levels on food offer a wealth of important information – but it can feel like you need a PHD to understand them. By Juliette Kellow.

Eat the rainbow

Eating brightly coloured fruit and vegetables can keep you fit and healthy and protect against certain cancers, arthritis, heart disease, cataracts and even premature ageing. As children we might have been told to ‘eat our greens’, but now health experts agree it’s just as important to eat our reds, oranges, yellows, blues and purples, too, reports Juliette Kellow.

Gut reaction

If you believe the TV ads, the message is clear: drink probiotics and you’ll become happier and healthier. Christina Quaine reports.

Losing your shine?

It sounds heavy – and no, we don’t mean the likes of Metallica, but heavy metal toxicity is threatening our health. By Helen Renshaw.

Reaction time

New research suggests that almost half of us suffer from food intolerances and allergies. Medical writer Jo Revill looks at this growing problem.

Bitter pill

Many of us swallow a cocktail of vitamin and mineral pills every day in an effort to stay healthy – but are they worth the money? Top nutritionist Juliette Kellow investigates.

Popping a pill each day to stay healthy is undoubtedly an attractive and easy solution – certainly to Oscar winner Hilary Swank, who recently admitted to taking 45 nutritional supplements (including one called the Oz Garcia Longevity Pak created by a ‘life extension specialist’) a day.

But it’s not just Hollywood stars who’ve jumped on the ‘nutraceutical’ bandwagon. The most recent National Diet and Nutrition Survey for Adults reveals that 40 per cent of women and 29 per cent of men in the UK take food supplements, with multi-vitamins, multi-minerals and fish-based oils being the most popular. In fact, according to a recent Mintel Report, sales of such supplements have increased by four per cent in the last five years and the UK market is now worth £364 million.

But then, that’s hardly surprising considering all the positive press lavished on supplements recently. Health companies have not been slow to react to the trend, and supplements – especially those claiming specific health benefits – can cost a small fortune.

At best, overdoing the miracle-promising supplements is likely to be pointless, as excess nutrients are simply excreted. Plus, research reveals that when individual nutrients are taken in supplement form, they’re less likely to promote health when compared to the combination of nutrients supplied by Mother Nature in foods.

But there are also several more worrying aspects to following a pill-popping regime. Health professionals express concern that people taking supplements may believe they have all their nutritional bases covered and worry less about the food they are eating.

And, just like prescription drugs, there’s the real danger of overdosing on vitamin and mineral pills. Because supplements have a healthy image, it’s not thought that large doses could potentially put our health at risk. In fact, most vitamins and minerals can have harmful side effects when taken in excess. For example, research suggests that having more than an average of 1.5mg per day of vitamin A – found in multivitamins and fish liver oil supplements – over many years may weaken bones. As a result, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) recommends having no more than 1.5mg per day from food and supplements.

Even vitamin C can have side effects including stomach pain, diarrhoea and flatulence, when large amounts are consumed, so it’s best to have no more than 1,000mg a day (the recommended daily amount in the UK is just 40mg).

Meanwhile, supplements of beta-carotene, a nutrient that’s often talked about for its antioxidant benefits, have been found to increase the risk of lung cancer in smokers. The FSA advises taking no more than 7mg of beta-carotene a day in supplement form, and states that smokers should avoid this nutrient pill altogether.

Perhaps the most important question is why anyone would take supplements when you can get all the nutrients you need from fresh, healthy ingredients? Ask health experts and the answer is clear: if you eat a balanced, nutrient-rich diet, you shouldn’t need a daily supplement, however there are a few times in our life when we might need a helping hand.

When might I need supplements?

The vegetarian/vegan
Veggies might want to take a multi-vitamin containing iron. Vegans may have low intakes of vitamin B12 – a nutrient found in meat, fish, eggs and dairy products – so might need to take a vitamin B12 supplement.

Food fix
Include plenty of plant sources of iron such as beans, lentils, nuts, green leafy veg such as spinach, dried fruit and fortified breakfast cereals.

The mum-to-be
The FSA recommends pregnant women take a 10mcg vitamin D supplement each day. It’s also important to boost intakes of folic acid, which helps reduce the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida in the baby. Women trying for a baby and in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy should take a 400mcg folic acid supplement.

Food fix
Eat folate-rich foods, such as spinach, peas, broccoli, beans, brown rice and fortified breakfast cereals. Vitamin D is found in oily fish, such as sardines (eat no more than two portions a week when pregnant), eggs, margarine and fortified breakfast cereals.

The new mum
Breast-feeding increases the need for nutrients, so the FSA recommends breast-feeding mums take a 10mcg supplement of vitamin D each day.

Food fix
Eat a range of nutritious foods from the main food groups.

The older person
If you are at risk of osteoporosis, consider taking a calcium supplement. Also you might want to take a 10mcg vitamin D supplement, particularly if you don’t get outside much (sunlight on skin makes vitamin D in the body).

Food fix
Boost calcium intakes with low-fat dairy products, pulses, nuts, seeds and green leafy veg, such as lettuce. For vitamin D-rich foods, see Mum-to-be, above.

For more information on vitamins and minerals, visit eatwell