Lady Macbeth kept scrubbing but she couldn’t get the marks out. Shakespeare’s character was so wracked with guilt that imaginary blood stains appeared on her hands and, try as she may, she couldn’t get herself clean. It’s not just fiction: research shows that all of us have a powerful urge to wash, bathe, shower, or purge whenever we feel we may have wronged. In the 21st Century, however, we are more likely to feel guilty about a weekend of overindulgences than we are for religious transgressions; but instead of washing our hands we go for a dietary ‘detox’ – the modern day body cleansing craze. In fact, detoxing has now become so widely believed that it is difficult to convince most people that it is utter hocus-pocus – even though the British Dietetic Association, NHS and British Nutrition Foundation all agree that it is just marketing mythology. Read more
Tag: diets
Rare, Medium or Well done? The science of a perfect steak
Vegetarians, look away now. Today’s post is distinctly carnivorous. Read on, you red meat eaters, as we are discussing an issue of upmost culinary importance…
You can’t beat a good steak, I say. Quality medium-rare beef fillet; served with fries and salad is true feel-good food. I know I’m not the only one: it is one of the most popular last meals for death row inmates (after deep fried chicken). Not that that should necessarily be a measure of good taste.
Personal preferences aside (an overcooked sirloin is a travesty), is there a secret to grilling the tastiest, most nutritious steak? Whether or not you like yours with mustard, here’s some science to guide you in the kitchen… Read more
Does eating Celery burn calories? The Science about ‘Negative Calorie’ diets (finally).
Science can be great for answering life’s little questions – you know, the sort of thing you ponder whilst sitting on the toilet or waiting for the number 49 bus. Does chewing gum take seven years to digest? No. Will eating bread crusts make your hair curl? You should be so lucky. Will eating an apple a day keep the doctor away? Probably not, but it might do you some good. Once in a while, there’s a question that is a bit harder to prove one way or the other.
Take celery. I was recently asked whether eating it caused you to lose weight. Sounds crazy, but the logic behind it is half plausible. It goes something like this: Celery has hardly any calories in it (6 calories per stalk) and the process of digesting food burns energy. Because celery is quite a bulky, fibrous plant it’s going to take a lot of chewing and digesting. Surely that’s more than those meager six calories? If true – eating celery will help you loose weight.
After a bit of digging into the scientific literature, I think I may be able to resolve the negative calorie food debate once and for all… Read more