Recent news

The Royal Society of Public Health has called for “activity equivalent” labelling to be introduced to show the amount of exercise needed to burn off the calories contained in food and drink.

Based on figures released by the British Heart Foundation, a 171-calorie packet of crisps would require 19 minutes of jogging, over ten minutes of swimming and 23 minutes of cycling. For a regular-size chocolate bar, nearly 50 minutes of cycling or 29 minutes of swimming would be required.

The RSPH believe the change in packaging would help tackle the obesity crisis. Their commissioned research from Populus found that two-thirds of people would be in favour of the change.

However, a leading obesity campaigner suggested it was an over-simplistic idea and did not address the risks of a bad diet.

Chief executive at RSPH, Shirley Cramer said, “While nutritional information provided on food and drink packaging has improved, there is evidence that it isn’t working as well...

Rumours that cutting back on meat is good for the planet as well as your health are spreading. While imagining a meal without meat might be difficult, there are so many recipes out there that you can get creative!

Plant-based eating is growing ever popular and while it may be a big ask for you meat-lovers out there, try cutting it out once a week. It is said that having one meat-free day a week can lower your risk of developing conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity.

If you’re inspired to take the challenge, take a look at our favourite tips to boost the meatless Monday dinner.

Get nutty

Adding nuts or seeds to salads can make them much more satisfying and more nutritious. Why not try adding toasted walnuts to a blue cheese salad or toasted pine nuts with spinach?

Get season savvy

This is your chance to experiment with seasonal ingredients. If you like a crunch in your salads, slice up some...

The NHS is planning to impose a tax on all sugary food and drink sold in hospital cafes to help tackle the growing problem of obesity. Chief executive, Simon Stevens told the Guardian newspaper that the tax is to be introduced by 2020.

Stevens continued to say that the 1.3 million NHS staff have a responsibility, it is up to them to lead by example. While David Cameron is not ruling out a national sugar tax, Stevens urges MPs to take action.

The NHS would be the first public body in Britain to impose the sugar tax, suggested by Jamie Oliver in 2015.

It is estimated the 20% tax (applied initially to sugary drinks) could raise up to £20m to £40m a year. Stevens hopes the tax will discourage staff, patients and visitors from buying sugary produce, while the money raised could be used to improve the NHS.

NHS bosses plan to introduce the tax gradually, enforcing the tax as the catering and shop contracts come to an end and are due a renewal.

“It’s not...

While studies into the effect food has on a child’s behaviour have seen mixed results, it is important to get the child into the habit of healthy eating. With the recent release of the Sugar Smart app, parents are looking for healthier alternatives.

The first area to focus on in a child’s diet is the overall nutritional content. The principles of a balanced diet include small, frequent meals, plenty of water, fresh fruits and vegetables and essential fatty acids.

Breakfast

Always encourage your child to eat breakfast before heading out to school. Eating breakfast prepares the mind and body for a day of activities and will stop them from snacking later in the day. However, many cereals available in the supermarkets contain a lot of added sugar.

Instead try to include lower-GI foods, including:

• Whole grain toast and a boiled egg.
• Porridge with apple and some natural yoghurt.
• Weetabix with milk and a sliced...

If you are one of the many people wanting to make a healthy change this season, it can be difficult to know where to start.

Making a resolution to eat healthier is the first step, but one of the hardest changes to make is to control the snacking.

We’ve all been there, the clock strikes three and you’re hit with intense feelings of tiredness, hunger and boredom. The need for a little pick-me-up inevitably leads to us reaching for the biscuit tin. Rather than cutting these mid-afternoon nibbles out completely, try to compromise with yourself and find healthier alternatives.

Nim’s Fruit Crisps

Winner of the 2014 Great Taste Award, Nim’s Fruit Crisps are a deliciously sweet snack that can help to curb that 3pm hunger. This little packet contains nothing but slices of nutritious, air-dried fresh fruit. This snack holds 100% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C and is high in...

Last year saw plenty of food trends taking over supermarkets and social media, from chia seeds and spiralisers to green kale juices. While some “super foods” remain in the spotlight, what other foods are set to dominate 2016?

Bowl foods

The first on the list started to make a name for itself in 2015. Simply search “goddess bowls” on Instagram and you will be overwhelmed with the results. However, serving food out of bowls is set to be even bigger this year, with names such as smoothie bowls and power bowls making their way onto health food menus.

They appear to be easy to make. Simply add a whole grain, a mixture of vegetables and some protein to the bowl. Top it off with a homemade dressing made of healthy oils and spices to create your balanced bowl of goodness. It has been suggested that eating from a bowl can also help to monitor portion size.

Seaweed

In the eyes of the super-healthy, this food isn’t going...

To see in the New Year, Public Health England (PHE) released the “sugar smart app”. The app works by scanning the barcodes of food products and revealing the total sugar content in either grams, or cubes.

Health officials are hoping the app with help combat obesity, tooth decay and type 2 diabetes, as well as encouraging families to choose the healthier options.

Public Health England announced that young children are consuming up to three times more than the daily recommended sugar limit.

The latest Change4Life advertising campaign which focuses on the sugar app, suggests that young children between the ages of four and 10 years old are consuming up to 22kg of added sugar each year. (That’s almost 5,500 sugar cubes, weighing more than the average five year old).

The sugar app has been developed with the hope of raising awareness of how much sugar is in food and drink products. More than 75,000 products work with the app, parents can simply scan the...