Everyone loves a curry...

This recipe of mine has appeared on my friend Liz’s Fit & Fun at Home Facebook page, so I thought I’d share it here too. As well as requiring no specialist skill or equipment, nor a vast list of ingredients which it takes hours to buy, this curry is very tasty, and packed full of beneficial ingredients:

·         I’ve previously mentioned the benefits of eating oily fish such as the salmon here, which could just as well be replaced by trout;

·         The cauliflower and spinach both contains high levels of compounds called glucosinolates, which may have a protective effect against certain forms of cancer. Studies have shown that they can block the initiation of tumours.¹

·         Quercetin found in the onion is a powerful antioxidant, and studies have linked high intake of it with reduced risk of heart disease; ²

·         Sweet potatoes are a great source of vitamins A and C, and are a source of low GI carbohydrate, which will not give your blood an insulin spike, keeping energy levels more constant.

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium white onion, chopped
1/2 jar curry paste (Patak's Tandoori works well here)
1 can of coconut milk
4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" cubes
1 cauliflower, cut into medium florets
4 salmon fillets, skinned and cut into 1" think slices
1 bag of spinach



Method:
Cook the onion in the oil until soft but not too coloured. Add the paste and sweet potato. Stir and add the coconut milk. Bring to the boil, put on a lid, and leave to simmer for 10 minutes. Add the cauliflower, and simmer with lid off for another 10 minutes. Throw in the salmon, then the spinach, cover and cook for about 8 minutes, until the fish is cooked and the spinach is wilted. Serve sprinkled with coriander leaves if you have them.
Eat with naan bread to mop up the sauce, unless you're on a gluten-free diet, in which case just tip the bowl up and slurp up the sauce!

Nutrition:

A bowl of this will give you the following nutrients:

Energy: 616 kCalories

Protein: 33g

Carbohydrates: 39g

Fat: 33g

To change things up, this would work equally well by substituting any white fish or prawns for the salmon, or broccoli for the cauliflower. A garnish of chopped fresh chilli would give a metabolism-raising hit of flavour.

References

1     Navarro, S. L., Li, F. & Lampe, J. W. Mechanisms of action of isothiocyanates in cancer chemoprevention: an update. Food Funct 2, 579-587, doi:10.1039/c1fo10114e (2011).

2          Davis, J. M., Murphy, E. A., Carmichael, M. D. & Davis, B. Quercetin increases brain and muscle mitochondrial biogenesis and exercise tolerance. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 296, R1071-1077, doi:90925.2008 [pii] 10.1152/ajpregu.90925.2008 (2009).

Don't believe the hype

Chocolate

As a real chocoholic, I make no apologies for the crowd-pleasing subject of this post. It seems that you cannot go a week without the press carrying a miraculous headline that a food previously-labelled as bad for you now has health-giving properties, making it seemingly alright to consume as much as you wish. The two main commodities in question are arguably the two most attractive, alcohol and chocolate. This post will deal with the latter, and hopefully clarify some potentially misleading headlines.

The reason for a product so full of fat and sugar having possible health benefits comes from a group of chemicals called polyphenols, which are the result of metabolic reactions within the cocoa plant (theobroma cocoa, Latin fans). It seems that these polyphenols are often created to help a plant survive natural stresses such as extreme heat, and that these protective properties sometimes have similar benefits to humans when ingested. In the case of chocolate, the main polyphenols whose health benefits have been studied are called flavanols, proanthocyanidins and anthocyanins.¹

Study evidence suggests several main health benefits of chocolate:

1.      Antioxidant content. Free radicals are a by-product of many natural reactions within human cells. These free radicals are very reactive, and as a result can cause damage to healthy cells. Antioxidants can “mop up” these free radicals, reducing the potential for cell damage, and related conditions such as cardiovascular disease. Studies have shown that long-term dark chocolate consumption can increase the antioxidant capacity of blood plasma, and decrease the oxidation of LDL cholesterol (a major contributing factor to heart disease)², and that flavanols from a cocoa drink can inhibit oxidation markers within the blood.³

2.      Reduction of blood pressure. Dark chocolate high in flavanols have been shown to reduce blood pressure^4-5. However, 2 things need to be borne in mind here. Firstly, these studies used chocolate that was especially formulated to be high in flavanols, and as we will see below, not all chocolates are created equal. Secondly, as a food chocolate is high in fat and sugar, both of which can contribute to raised blood pressure anyway.

3.      Arterial reactivity. Dysfunctional arteries with reduced flexibility are an important marker for cardiovascular disease. Arterial function is promoted by the production of nitric oxide (NO), and flavanols within chocolate have been linked with increased production of NO, resulting in greater arterial reactivity and consequently reduced risk of heart disease, stroke and related conditions.⁶ This study found a dose-dependent effect, i.e. the more you take in the better the effect. However, as above, greater intake of a fatty food has been linked with adverse effects such as increased CVD risk, so this result should be taken in the context of the whole diet, rather than an “eat chocolate and you’ll reduce your heart attack risk” blanket message.  

4.      Other reported benefits of cocoa-derived polyphenols include increased circulation of blood to the skin,⁷ increased oxygen saturation in blood to the brain during cognitive tasks⁸, and reduced incidence of brain disorders in long-term consumers of cocoa.⁹

However, these health benefits need to be taken in context for several reasons. Firstly, several of these studies use chocolate which has been specially formulated to include especially high levels of polyphenols, rather more than your average bar of Dairy Milk. Other studies have given subjects chemically-isolated polyphenols rather than whole chocolate, meaning that you can draw conclusions as to the effect of the polyphenol, but not as to its effect when taken is as a component of the whole food.

In fact, the food matrix appears to be of great importance when it comes to health benefits of chocolate. Not all chocolate is equal, with great variety in the amount of epicatechin observed in fermented beans from different regions.¹⁰ Another related issue stems from the production of chocolate from its raw bean state. The roasting, fermentation and other steps in the chocolate-making process can result in up to 85% of the polyphenols being lost or changed into unusable forms.¹¹ With the health-giving properties of cocoa flavanols being big news, producers are trying to find new processes to increase the polyphenol content of their chocolate, but these not in general use by the industry.

                                        

Many of these studies used cocoa drinks rather than chocolate bars, and there seems to be a greater effect when the flavanols are delivered in this way rather than in the solid form. It also appears that the milk proteins in milk chocolate can bind with the flavanols within the chocolate, which can reduce how much of the flavanols you can actually absorb. This has led to the common conception that dark chocolate is the one that is “good for you.”

So what can we conclude from the wealth of scientific evidence about chocolate? We have gone from the Chocolate is GOOD for you!!!! headline to the reality which is that chocolate contains compounds which, as long as they survive the production process and are consumed in the right concentrations from the correct food delivery system without you eating too much fat and sugar, might be able to reduce your risk of certain conditions. Not as snappy or sales-orientated, but it does have the benefit of being closer to the truth.

References

1          Wollgast, J. & Anklam, E. Review on polyphenols in Theobroma cacao: changes in composition during the manufacture of chocolate and methodology for identification and quantification. Food Research International 33, 423-447 (2000).

2          Baba, S. et al. Continuous intake of polyphenolic compounds containing cocoa powder reduces LDL oxidative susceptibility and has beneficial effects on plasma HDL-cholesterol concentrations in humans. Am J Clin Nutr 85, 709-717, doi:85/3/709 [pii] (2007).

3          Flammer, A. J. et al. Dark chocolate improves coronary vasomotion and reduces platelet reactivity. Circulation 116, 2376-2382, doi:CIRCULATIONAHA.107.713867[pii] 0.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.713867 (2007).

4          Grassi, D., Lippi, C., Necozione, S., Desideri, G. & Ferri, C. Short-term administration of dark chocolate is followed by a significant increase in insulin sensitivity and a decrease in blood pressure in healthy persons. Am J Clin Nutr 81, 611-614, doi:81/3/611 [pii] (2005).

5          Grassi, D. et al. Blood pressure is reduced and insulin sensitivity increased in glucose-intolerant, hypertensive subjects after 15 days of consuming high-polyphenol dark chocolate. J Nutr 138, 1671-1676, doi:138/9/1671 [pii] (2008).

6          Monahan, K. D. et al. Dose-dependent increases in flow-mediated dilation following acute cocoa ingestion in healthy older adults. J Appl Physiol 111, 1568-1574, doi:japplphysiol.00865.2011 [pii] 10.1152/japplphysiol.00865.2011 (2011).

7          Neukam, K., Stahl, W., Tronnier, H., Sies, H. & Heinrich, U. Consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa acutely increases microcirculation in human skin. Eur J Nutr 46, 53-56, doi:10.1007/s00394-006-0627-6 (2007).

8          Francis, S. T., Head, K., Morris, P. G. & Macdonald, I. A. The effect of flavanol-rich cocoa on the fMRI response to a cognitive task in healthy young people. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 47 Suppl 2, S215-220, doi:00005344-200606001-00018 [pii] (2006).

9          Bayard, V., Chamorro, F., Motta, J. & Hollenberg, N. K. Does flavanol intake influence mortality from nitric oxide-dependent processes? Ischemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and cancer in Panama. Int J Med Sci 4, 53-58 (2007).

10        Kim, H. & Keeney, P. (-)-Epicatechin Content in Fermented and Unfermented Cocoa Beans. Journal of Food Science 49, 1090-1092 (2006).

11        Visioli, F. et al. Chocolate, lifestyle, and health. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 49, 299-312, doi:908817344 [pii] 10.1080/10408390802066805 (2009).

Jamie Oliver made me cry

If you’re in the UK, chances are that you have an opinion on Jamie Oliver. For someone who has sold that many cookbooks, and made that many TV programmes, he certainly seems to polarise opinion. To get the negative out of the way first, there is a perception that his image is utterly confected, that this wide boy persona is fake, created to tap into the “new lad” culture which was prevalent when he came to fame in the late 1990s. While it is undeniable that this had some effect on his success, two things spring to mind here. Firstly, this image is credited with the effect of “making it alright for blokes to cook.” Can’t see the harm there, young males are typically one of the demographics with the worst diet, and anything to improve the quality of what they eat has to have some knock-on effect on the health of a nation as a whole. Secondly, chances are this is a result not of Jamie himself, but of the BBC’s marketing people trying to find a new angle to present a talented chef on TV, in a marketed that was already saturated. In this case, it was hardly Jamie’s fault – he was just a young man trying to make a name for himself.

                           

Now the result of that making that name has resulted in another criticism, namely that of over-exposure. This does carry some merit, in that what with his BBC and then Channel 4 series, his adverts for a certain supermarket, and his campaigns, there is seldom a time when he is not on our screens. Oh, hang on, what was that last bit? Campaigns. Oh yes. Here we come to an interesting point about Jamie. While many young men who come into a lot of money at a young age decide that the most appropriate course of behaviour is to spend it recklessly, get thrown out of nightclubs, and behave as if you are legally untouchable (we’re looking at you here, footballers), Jamie decided that he would use his fame and influence in quite a different fashion.

Firstly, there was the campaign to improve school dinners. While there has been some debate as to the success of this campaign (it definitely helped to improve the food at my children’s school), it has certainly raised awareness of the need to improve school food, and of the wider issue of children’s diet and their link with academic performance, attention issues, risk of disease in later life, and even life expectancy. The Kitchen Garden Project teaches children the value of growing and cooking their own food, while the Ministry of Food teaches cooking skills which seem to be on the wane with the modern trend for convenience foods. Given that reliance on such foods - with their high fat, sugar and salt content -  has been linked so closely with modern lifestyle diseases such as coronary heart disease and diabetes, it’s not exactly a leap to see how developing these skills can help to increase health and quality of life. None of these campaigns have a complicated message, and this is for me their power. Teach about food and its importance from a young age, and you will help the next generation to improve their health. It’s that simple. While it does not take a great leap of logic to realise that real food, and the ability to prepare it, is much better for health than ready-made food from a packet, it may take a “celebrity campaign” to show that it does not involve spending several years at catering college to be able to cook healthy food for your family.

This brings me onto the other aspect of Jamie’s notoriety – his recipes. He learned his trade at his father’s pub in Clavering Essex, and was discovered working at the River Café. Both establishments have a focus on simple, seasonal food, well prepared. This has dictated his culinary philosophy – his books are full of recipes which have great flavour, while being relatively simple to prepare, and using fresh ingredients. While many celebrity chefs’ books are little more than coffee table items, filled with recipes so complicated they require NASA-like levels of preparation, Jamie’s recipes have the same qualities as those of Delia Smith – simple to prepare, always very tasty, and incredibly reliable. His latest, 15 Minute Meals, is not only filled with recipes which hit all the above criteria, but also have a focus on health, as full nutritional breakdowns are covered, and the emphasis is on maximum flavour with the least amount of fat/salt/sugar/other bad stuff. It is easily the best cookbook I’ve bought in years (I’ve bought 3 copies for other people, and my copy is covered in stains from use), although I do have one criticism – if the meal takes 15 minutes to prepare, the washing generally takes longer than that, as you do end up using most of your kitchen to make it.

To finish off what seems to have turned into a love letter to Jamie (I’m not apologising for that), the video below is included as an attempt to convince the doubters that he is just a product of cynical marketing. This video made me cry, with its sincerity of message, and its importance. I hope you find it inspiring, even if it is just to make your dinner tonight with fresh ingredients, rather than get it out of a packet. If not, then I hope it suggests to you that Jamie Oliver is a Good Thing when it comes to this country's eating habits.