Latest news with #RhianStephenson
Vogue
3 days ago
- Health
- Vogue
4 Quick And Healthy Breakfasts With 30g Of Protein
If you know you need to eat more protein but aren't sure where to start, breakfast is a good place. Eating a sizeable portion of your daily protein goal first thing not only ticks a box early, it also helps to curb energy slumps, sugar cravings, and sluggishness later in the day. Current guidelines recommend 0.75g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, but this number can change depending on your age and lifestyle. For example, if you strength train regularly or have an active job, this number may increase. If you're older and more sedentary, it'll decrease. 'Eating a healthy portion of protein for breakfast can help balance blood sugar and energy,' says nutritionist and founder of Artah, Rhian Stephenson, who tends to recommend closer to 1.2g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight to her clients. 'Plus, studies have shown that front-loading your day with adequate protein improves satiety and decreases appetite throughout the day.' Consider us persuaded. Here are four simple high-protein breakfast recipes to incorporate into your morning routine. 1. High-protein yogurt bowl Nutritionist and functional medicine practitioner Farzanah Nasser eats this high-fiber, high-protein breakfast most mornings. 'This recipe hits 30g of protein and 13g of fiber, which is almost half of the daily recommended amount. It also contains two sources of probiotics (which help maintain a healthy gut microbiome), and will keep you full until lunchtime—no energy crashes in sight.' Ingredients 150g 0% fat Greek yogurt ¼ to ½ cup kefir 20g shelled hempseed 20g ground flaxseeds 1 tsp chia seeds 1 heaped tsp oats 1 heaped tsp almond butter Fruit of choice Optional: honey Method Add the yogurt, kefir, hempseed, flaxseeds, chia seeds, and oats into a bowl and mix well. Then top with your fruit of choice (Nasser likes one kiwi fruit) and a drizzle of almond butter and honey. 2. High-protein spinach scramble 'This satisfying breakfast is quick to make and provides a healthy dose of protein to start the day,' says Lingo by Abbott's resident nutritionist, Sophie Bertrand. 'Eggs are rich in a variety of nutrients, including vitamins A, B12, E, as well as choline, zinc, and selenium. The spinach adds beneficial antioxidants and fiber, too.' Ingredients 3 large eggs ¼ cup low-fat cottage cheese ½ cup fresh spinach 1 tsp olive oil Salt and pepper to taste Optional: 1 tbsp chia or hemp seeds Method Heat a pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk them until the yolks and whites are well combined. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook, stirring gently, until they begin to set but are still slightly runny. Add the cottage cheese and spinach to the eggs and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the eggs are fully scrambled and the spinach has wilted. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and sprinkle in chia or hemp seeds if using. Serve immediately and enjoy. 3. High-protein peach smoothie 'This 'springtime in a glass' smoothie not only delivers more than 30g of protein—thanks to the protein powder—but the hemp seeds and nut butter support everything from blood sugar balance to muscle recovery and neurotransmitter health,' says naturopathic nutritionist and hormone specialist Jessica Shand. 'The maca root powder helps with energy and hormone balance, while the bee pollen supports immunity, and the fruit is rich in antioxidants.' Ingredients 200ml organic kefir 50ml unsweetened almond milk 1 scoop protein powder 1 tsp maca powder 1 tbsp bee pollen 1 peach 1 cup frozen raspberries ½ cup frozen avocado ½ cup frozen mango 2 tbsp hemp seed 1 tbsp nut butter Method Add all ingredients to your blender and blitz until smooth. 4. High-protein vegan eggs on toast 'Tofu is a minimally processed product made from soya beans and is an excellent source of protein with good amounts of all nine essential amino acids,' explains plant-based nutritionist Rohini Bajekal. 'This recipe is also rich in herbs and spices, which are the most antioxidant-rich of all food groups. When you use them in dishes, it tends to reduce the desire for excess salt, oil, and sugar.' This recipe pairs well with sourdough or rye bread, says Bajekal, but you could also pop it into a wrap for a portable version. Ingredients 150g firm tofu (15g protein 50g chickpea flour (10g protein) 30g spinach (1g protein) 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (4g protein) 1 slice wholemeal bread (3g protein) ¼ avocado 1 tbsp olive oil ½ small onion, diced ¼ bell pepper, diced ½ tsp turmeric ¼ tsp paprika ¼ tsp cumin Optional: ¼ tsp black salt Salt and pepper to taste Fresh herbs such as basil for garnish Method
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Why eating fewer carbs burns just as much fat as fasting
Intermittent fasting is now one of the most-followed dietary patterns in the developed world. According to a 2022 survey, about 10 per cent of American adults practise intermittent fasting, and while the same stats for Britain don't exist, we all know someone who now skips breakfast to maintain their eight hour 'eating window' each day. It's a fact that pleases nutritionists, doctors and diabetes experts alike. Keeping our eating to a tight timeframe 'can help your body shift from burning food as fuel to burning fat, helping with weight management or weight loss, regulating your blood sugar levels and giving you more energy throughout the day,' says nutritionist Rhian Stephenson, founder of the supplement brand Artah. But there is an obvious downside to time-restricted eating. The hours spent waiting for the eating window to open are often spent feeling ravenous, miserable and totally drained, and the early dinners that are necessary on this diet – as eating typically stops at 8pm sharp – can become anti-social. What if there was a way to get all of the health benefits of intermittent fasting, and at the same time enjoy both a filling breakfast and a late evening meal? New research suggests that this could be possible after all – if you're willing to cut carbohydrates out of some of your meals. A study from the University of Surrey, published in April, suggests that 'by restricting carbohydrate intake, without restricting calorie consumption, people can potentially reap all the same benefits that are associated with short-term fasting,' says Dr Adam Collins, an associate professor of nutrition who led the research. A recent study led by Dr Collins found that by reducing the amount of pasta, potatoes of bread you eat and following a low-carb diet, it can bring all the benefits that we've come to associate with fasting. Most importantly, a switch to burning fat rather than food for fuel, which can lower blood sugar and inflammation and potentially make us less prone to heart disease and diabetes in the long run 'Cutting down on carbs for a few days each week could therefore be a more sustainable but equally effective way for people to manage and improve their metabolic health,' he adds. 'That could take the form of having a 'carb window' instead of a food window, or something similar to the 5:2 diet, which is where people eat normally five days a week, and on the remaining two they eat one meal or five to six hundred calories.' Dr Collins' study followed the same group of 32 people, all of whom were overweight according to their BMI, across three different days (with five 'washout' days in between). On day one, the participants ate enough calories to meet their daily needs, ranging from 1,800 to 3,000 based on their weight and gender. On day two, they ate a low-carb, low-calorie diet: women in the study were restricted to around 550 calories, while men ate around 650 calories, and both groups ate 50g of carbohydrates (roughly the amount of carbs in a small portion of cooked pasta). On the third day, the group could eat as many calories as they needed, but had to keep their carbohydrate consumption to 50g a day. 'Both low-carb days led to improvements in the participants' metabolic health markers, including a shift into a fat-burning state, and how well they could process a high-fat meal after we observed them,' Dr Collins says. 'Essentially, all the benefits you usually get from fasting were still observed when people just ate fewer carbs.' The Surrey University team were 'tease out the effects of carb restriction from those of calorie restriction,' explains Dr Collins. Crucially, the study didn't look at weight loss – 'you can't measure that after just one day,' he points out. But in the real world, 'when people eat fewer carbohydrates, they take on fewer calories,' leading to a loss in weight, primarily in the form of fat. This is important to understanding metabolic health as a whole, not only for those who want to lose weight. 'Restricting your carb intake for a few days each week means that you avoid over-fuelling your body and will only ever be burning food as fuel. Being able to switch into fat-burning mode is crucial to avoiding health complications as you age, like diabetes, heart disease and weight gain,' Dr Collins says. Though you'll only get visibly slimmer if you eat fewer calories than you burn, fasting and carb-restricted eating in any amount 'could both potentially burn some of the fat that develops inside of your organs when you consistently eat more carbohydrates than you burn,' a huge health boost as this kind of fat has been linked to increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes. As Naveed Sattar, a professor of metabolic medicine from the University of Glasgow points out, 'this study is small, and you'd need a big, long-term study to see exactly what the effects of this type of eating would be'. But 'it's very exciting, and potentially could do a lot to inform the dietary advice we give to people at risk of diabetes and heart disease in future'. This study only involved people who are over a healthy weight range for their height, 'but we'd expect to see similar impacts in people who are a healthy weight too,' says Dr Collins, 'though the less metabolically healthy someone is, the more exaggerated the effect will be'. This is good news if you're attempting to turn your health around quickly. For all the benefits that come with intermittent fasting there are also drawbacks, and more serious ones than raging hunger. 'When people practise intermittent fasting consistently for weeks or months, they often put themselves at risk of nutrient deficiencies,' says Stephenson. 'The fewer calories you eat every day, the harder it is for you to get all of the nutrients you need – and keeping a small eating window doesn't mean that you will eat healthily.' There are also groups of people who don't get on well with fasting for reasons other than hunger. 'I don't recommend fasting to perimenopausal or menopausal women, because fasting can disrupt your hormones and put more strain on your body at a time when it is already under a lot of stress,' she says. A carb-cycling diet could give these women 'some of the same benefits of fasting without the drawbacks,' Stephenson adds. And while fasting can be good for all of us, not everyone wants – or needs – to lose weight. 'Weight loss is a product of eating fewer calories than you expend, so if you eat enough or more than enough calories while limiting your carb consumption, you won't lose weight,' Stephenson explains. This could make a few low-carb days 'a particularly good option for people who have lost weight and are looking for a way to maintain it,' says Dr Collins. 'That's very difficult to do, and currently we don't have much to offer people in that position.' That said, restricting carbohydrates could come with its own risks. 'There's some evidence to suggest that low-carbohydrate diets can be bad for your heart, where you replace the carbs primarily with fat,' says Prof Sattar. 'There could be other dangers that we wouldn't be able to identify outside of a large-scale randomised clinical trial.' For this reason, Stephenson suggests cutting your daily carbohydrate intake to no less than 100g, unless you're working with a nutritionist or doctor. 'It's also worth considering counting 'net carbs' rather than total carbs, by subtracting the grams of fibre in your food from the total carb count on the packet,' she adds. This is because your body doesn't use all of the carbohydrates you consume. Net carbs represent the amount of carb that can impact your blood sugar. Eating a low-carb diet for one or two days each week can be a lot easier than you might think. Here are two plans put together by Rhian Stephenson, so that you can eat well while you give it a go. 50g of carbohydrates, 1,800 calories 'This is similar to what participants ate in terms of carbohydrates in the study, and is concentrated within one meal to mimic a 'window' style of eating,' says Stephenson. 'It might also lead to weight loss if you follow this plan regularly, depending on your current weight and how much you exercise.' 2g net carbs 3 eggs 100g of spinach cooked with olive oil Half an avocado 2g net carbs Large mixed salad (leafy greens) Lean protein of choice (chicken, salmon or tofu) 2tbsp walnuts 2tbsp seeds Olive oil and vinegar dressing 48g net carbs 150g chicken breast cooked with olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper and herbs 200g lentils cooked with half an onion and olive oil 150g cherry tomatoes 1 kiwi Under 100g of carbohydrates, 1800 calories 'This is a more realistic version of a low-carb day that would better support your health if followed regularly, as it involves more carbohydrate intake that is spread throughout the day,' says Stephenson. 'Depending on your weight and how much you move, eating with this plan regularly might also lead to weight loss, but you could reduce some portion sizes or skip the snack to create a calorie deficit if you want to lose weight.' 34g net carbs 45g of jumbo oats 1 tbsp peanut butter 200ml unsweetened soy milk 1 tbsp walnuts 100g raspberries Sprinkle of cinnamon 1 boiled egg 14g net carbs Large green salad with mixed veg, cucumber, tomatoes and red pepper 1 can tuna in olive oil 50g chickpeas Oil and vinegar to dress 12g net carbs Half a head of cauliflower (to make cauliflower rice) One head of pak choi 150g chicken 100g mushrooms 35g sugar snap peas Sauce with tamari, sesame oil, vinegar, garlic and ginger 10g net carb 100g Greek yogurt 80g low-sugar fruit (eg Cantaloupe) 2 tbsp sunflower seeds Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
22-05-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Why eating less carbs burns just as much fat as fasting
Intermittent fasting is now one of the most-followed dietary patterns in the developed world. According to a 2022 survey, about 10 per cent of American adults practise intermittent fasting, and while the same stats for Britain don't exist, we all know someone who now skips breakfast to maintain their eight hour 'eating window' each day. It's a fact that pleases nutritionists, doctors and diabetes experts alike. Keeping our eating to a tight timeframe 'can help your body shift from burning food as fuel to burning fat, helping with weight management or weight loss, regulating your blood sugar levels and giving you more energy throughout the day,' says nutritionist Rhian Stephenson, founder of the supplement brand Artah. But there is an obvious downside to time-restricted eating. The hours spent waiting for the eating window to open are often spent feeling ravenous, miserable and totally drained, and the early dinners that are necessary on this diet – as eating typically stops at 8pm sharp – can become anti-social. What if there was a way to get all of the health benefits of intermittent fasting, and at the same time enjoy both a filling breakfast and a late evening meal? New research suggests that this could be possible after all – if you're willing to cut carbohydrates out of some of your meals. A study from the University of Surrey, published in April, suggests that 'by restricting carbohydrate intake, without restricting calorie consumption, people can potentially reap all the same benefits that are associated with short-term fasting,' says Dr Adam Collins, an associate professor of nutrition who led the research. A recent study led by Dr Collins found that by reducing the amount of pasta, potatoes of bread you eat and following a low-carb diet, it can bring all the benefits that we've come to associate with fasting. Most importantly, a switch to burning fat rather than food for fuel, which can lower blood sugar and inflammation and potentially make us less prone to heart disease and diabetes in the long run 'Cutting down on carbs for a few days each week could therefore be a more sustainable but equally effective way for people to manage and improve their metabolic health,' he adds. 'That could take the form of having a 'carb window' instead of a food window, or something similar to the 5:2 diet, which is where people eat normally five days a week, and on the remaining two they eat one meal or five to six hundred calories.' How it works Dr Collins' study followed the same group of 32 people, all of whom were overweight according to their BMI, across three different days (with five 'washout' days in between). On day one, the participants ate enough calories to meet their daily needs, ranging from 1,800 to 3,000 based on their weight and gender. On day two, they ate a low-carb, low-calorie diet: women in the study were restricted to around 550 calories, while men ate around 650 calories, and both groups ate 50g of carbohydrates (roughly the amount of carbs in a small portion of cooked pasta). On the third day, the group could eat as many calories as they needed, but had to keep their carbohydrate consumption to 50g a day. 'Both low-carb days led to improvements in the participants' metabolic health markers, including a shift into a fat-burning state, and how well they could process a high-fat meal after we observed them,' Dr Collins says. 'Essentially, all the benefits you usually get from fasting were still observed when people just ate fewer carbs.' The Surrey University team were 'tease out the effects of carb restriction from those of calorie restriction,' explains Dr Collins. Crucially, the study didn't look at weight loss – 'you can't measure that after just one day,' he points out. But in the real world, 'when people eat fewer carbohydrates, they take on fewer calories,' leading to a loss in weight, primarily in the form of fat. This is important to understanding metabolic health as a whole, not only for those who want to lose weight. 'Restricting your carb intake for a few days each week means that you avoid over-fuelling your body and will only ever be burning food as fuel. Being able to switch into fat-burning mode is crucial to avoiding health complications as you age, like diabetes, heart disease and weight gain,' Dr Collins says. Though you'll only get visibly slimmer if you eat fewer calories than you burn, fasting and carb-restricted eating in any amount 'could both potentially burn some of the fat that develops inside of your organs when you consistently eat more carbohydrates than you burn,' a huge health boost as this kind of fat has been linked to increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes. As Naveed Sattar, a professor of metabolic medicine from the University of Glasgow points out, 'this study is small, and you'd need a big, long-term study to see exactly what the effects of this type of eating would be'. But 'it's very exciting, and potentially could do a lot to inform the dietary advice we give to people at risk of diabetes and heart disease in future'. This study only involved people who are over a healthy weight range for their height, 'but we'd expect to see similar impacts in people who are a healthy weight too,' says Dr Collins, 'though the less metabolically healthy someone is, the more exaggerated the effect will be'. This is good news if you're attempting to turn your health around quickly. Intermittent fasting vs low-carb diets For all the benefits that come with intermittent fasting there are also drawbacks, and more serious ones than raging hunger. 'When people practise intermittent fasting consistently for weeks or months, they often put themselves at risk of nutrient deficiencies,' says Stephenson. 'The fewer calories you eat every day, the harder it is for you to get all of the nutrients you need – and keeping a small eating window doesn't mean that you will eat healthily.' There are also groups of people who don't get on well with fasting for reasons other than hunger. 'I don't recommend fasting to perimenopausal or menopausal women, because fasting can disrupt your hormones and put more strain on your body at a time when it is already under a lot of stress,' she says. A carb-cycling diet could give these women 'some of the same benefits of fasting without the drawbacks,' Stephenson adds. And while fasting can be good for all of us, not everyone wants – or needs – to lose weight. 'Weight loss is a product of eating fewer calories than you expend, so if you eat enough or more than enough calories while limiting your carb consumption, you won't lose weight,' Stephenson explains. This could make a few low-carb days 'a particularly good option for people who have lost weight and are looking for a way to maintain it,' says Dr Collins. 'That's very difficult to do, and currently we don't have much to offer people in that position.' That said, restricting carbohydrates could come with its own risks. 'There's some evidence to suggest that low-carbohydrate diets can be bad for your heart, where you replace the carbs primarily with fat,' says Prof Sattar. 'There could be other dangers that we wouldn't be able to identify outside of a large-scale randomised clinical trial.' For this reason, Stephenson suggests cutting your daily carbohydrate intake to no less than 100g, unless you're working with a nutritionist or doctor. 'It's also worth considering counting 'net carbs' rather than total carbs, by subtracting the grams of fibre in your food from the total carb count on the packet,' she adds. This is because your body doesn't use all of the carbohydrates you consume. Net carbs represent the amount of carb that can impact your blood sugar. One day on a low-carb, fat-burning diet Eating a low-carb diet for one or two days each week can be a lot easier than you might think. Here are two plans put together by Rhian Stephenson, so that you can eat well while you give it a go. Option 1 50g of carbohydrates, 1,800 calories 'This is similar to what participants ate in terms of carbohydrates in the study, and is concentrated within one meal to mimic a 'window' style of eating,' says Stephenson. 'It might also lead to weight loss if you follow this plan regularly, depending on your current weight and how much you exercise.' Breakfast: Spinach and egg scramble 2g net carbs Ingredients 150g chicken breast cooked with olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper and herbs 200g lentils cooked with half an onion and olive oil 150g cherry tomatoes 1 kiwi Option 2 Under 100g of carbohydrates, 1800 calories 'This is a more realistic version of a low-carb day that would better support your health if followed regularly, as it involves more carbohydrate intake that is spread throughout the day,' says Stephenson. 'Depending on your weight and how much you move, eating with this plan regularly might also lead to weight loss, but you could reduce some portion sizes or skip the snack to create a calorie deficit if you want to lose weight.' Breakfast: Overnight oats 34g net carbs Ingredients 45g of jumbo oats 1 tbsp peanut butter 200ml unsweetened soy milk 1 tbsp walnuts 100g raspberries Sprinkle of cinnamon 1 boiled egg Lunch: Tuna and chickpea salad 14g net carbs Ingredients Large green salad with mixed veg, cucumber, tomatoes and red pepper 1 can tuna in olive oil 50g chickpeas Oil and vinegar to dress Dinner: Chicken stir fry 12g net carbs Ingredients Half a head of cauliflower (to make cauliflower rice) One head of pak choi 150g chicken 100g mushrooms 35g sugar snap peas Sauce with tamari, sesame oil, vinegar, garlic and ginger Snack: Yogurt and fruit 10g net carb Ingredients 100g Greek yogurt 80g low-sugar fruit (eg Cantaloupe) 2 tbsp sunflower seeds
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
What are Electrolytes, and Do You Need to be Taking Them?
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." In the past few years, electrolytes – whether powders, ready-made drinks or gummies – have been steadily increasing in popularity among wellness types. Indeed, according to Google Trends, searches for electrolytes have increased eightfold since 2020, while the industry itself has grown by 10 per cent in the past year. Beauty influencers on TikTok are espousing the benefits of incorporating them into your daily routine (everything from keeping you fuller for longer to giving you glowing skin), and hero brands like Artah, Ancient+Brave and Free Soul have become household names. But what's behind the trend? And should we all be taking electrolytes daily? Dr Hazel Wallace, medical doctor, nutritionist and founder of The Food Medic Rhian Stephenson, nutritional therapist and founder of Artah First things first, what exactly are electrolytes? 'Electrolytes are essential minerals like sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium,' explains Dr Hazel Wallace. 'They carry an electric charge (hence the name) and help regulate key functions in the body including nerve impulses, muscle contractions, and fluid balance.' Most people consume their recommended intake of electrolytes through their diet with sodium, for example, found in table salt, or via the potassium in a banana. Other sources of sodium include pickled food like olives, while you can also find high levels of potassium in potatoes, leafy greens, beans and avocados. For magnesium, look to nuts, seeds, whole grains and beans, while calcium is found in not just dairy products (including fortified plant milks) but also leafy greens. Thanks to the marketing around drinking electrolyte-heavy drinks after a bout of tummy-related illness or an intense workout, we've come to largely associate electrolytes with hydration. But why is that the case? 'When it comes to general wellbeing, electrolytes are best known for their role in hydration because they help maintain fluid balance," explains Rhian Stephenson. "Essentially, they help direct water where to go. The body can move electrolytes and water in and out of cells in order to maintain fluid balance. Simplified, you can think of it like this: if electrolyte balance is high, fluid moves into the cell. If electrolyte balance is low, fluid moves out of the cell. This means that we can be taking in litres of water, but if we are low on electrolytes, our hydration status won't improve.' These mini powerhouses are actually really important for the general running of our bodies too, as Stephenson explains. 'Electrolytes are minerals that help conduct electrical charges between our cells, and help regulate numerous processes within the body,' she says. 'They're essential not just for fluid balance, but also for blood pressure, tissue health, muscle function, mood, energy production, cognitive function and more. Electrolytes are involved in the stress response; when we're low on electrolytes, our stress response is triggered, and when our stress response is triggered, it depletes electrolytes. They're essential for muscular contraction and play a role in not only physical performance, but inflammation, recovery, and DOMS.' The reason why some people need to supplement their electrolyte intake is down to the way that we lose them in the first place. As Dr Wallace explains: 'Electrolytes can be lost through sweat and other bodily fluids, so becoming dehydrated can lead to electrolyte imbalances. This is why people who are more active will usually need more electrolytes.' So, how do we know if we are at risk of being deficient in electrolytes? A lot of the symptoms are similar to dehydration. 'Low electrolyte levels can cause symptoms like muscle cramps, fatigue, dizziness, headaches, and nausea,' shares Dr Wallace. 'In more severe cases, they may lead to confusion, irregular heartbeat, or fainting. These symptoms often occur after heavy sweating, illness, or not getting enough electrolytes through food and drink.' It really depends on your activity levels and whether or not you are showing any symptoms of a deficiency. 'For most people, daily electrolyte supplementation isn't necessary and in some cases, excessive intake could cause harm,' shares Dr Wallace. 'People shouldn't be drinking them daily like a squash, which I see a lot on social media. However, supplements can be useful in specific situations: after vomiting or diarrhoea, during or after intense or long-duration workouts, in hot or humid conditions, or when training multiple times a day with limited time to rehydrate and refuel through food.' Stephenson agrees: 'It's important to understand the nuance here – we don't all have a blanket need for all electrolytes, especially sodium,' she says. 'As an example, the average sodium intake in the UK is 30 per cent higher than the recommended upper limit of 2500mg. For those who eat out more or have a diet that includes a lot of UPFs [ultra processed foods], this will be higher. We also know that we under-eat potassium and magnesium – the National Diet and Nutrition Survey revealed that we are well under the RNI for both. So, this is why an electrolyte that's more lifestyle-led – such as Artah's Cellular Hydration – can be helpful because electrolytes are essential for so many processes.' With electrolytes typically found in our diet, the easiest way to up them is to just start eating more of the foods that contain them. 'You can increase electrolytes through food and drink without needing supplements,' says Dr Wallace. 'Sodium can be found in table salt and salty foods; potassium is rich in bananas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, spinach, and beans; magnesium is present in nuts, seeds, whole grains, and leafy greens; and calcium is found in dairy products, fortified plant milks, tofu and leafy greens.' As with any new supplements or medications it is always best to speak to your general practitioner first – there's no one-size-fits-all approach. 'People with certain medical conditions, such as kidney disease or high blood pressure, may need to monitor their intake, especially of sodium or potassium,' says Dr Wallace. 'Always check with a healthcare professional if unsure.' You Might Also Like 4 Investment-Worthy Skincare Finds From Sephora The 17 Best Retinol Creams Worth Adding to Your Skin Care Routine
Telegraph
13-03-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
I gave up sugar for a month – and became a party bore
My Yorkshire childhood gave me a fatally sweet tooth. It's hard to believe now, but the 1970s high tea would feature a main course plus bread and jam, dessert and cake. Today I cook from scratch, but at the end of a meal, I need a sweet treat to switch off the hunger hormone (known as ghrelin). Sometimes dates will suffice, but in times of stress it's a Bounty or a Dairy Milk bar. My weakness is rubbish 1970s confectionery, though I've tried to love 80 per cent single-estate dark chocolate. I can down a Bounty Chocolate Trio pack in five minutes (I genuinely believe I'll stick to one bar). I assumed I could offset the excess sugar with a healthy diet and exercise. But at my midlife health check the blood test measuring my blood sugar levels was 41 (mmol/mol), one point from being pre-diabetic. My dad had Type 2 diabetes before he died of a heart attack, and my slim mum is pre-diabetic. Poor blood sugar and insulin control is also a risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease. So when my health editor challenges me to go sugar-free for a month, it feels like a chance to reset my sugar sensitivity. The rules are simple. No added sugars. Natural sugars like those found in dairy (lactose) and fruit (fructose) are OK. But no artificial sweeteners, no dried fruit. 'Can I have honey?' I plead. 'Honey IS sugar,' she sighs. It will be brutal to give the sweet stuff a miss, but just maybe I can reset my teenage palate… Why is sugar so unhealthy? The effects of excess sugar have systemic implications, says naturopath and nutritionist Rhian Stephenson, who founded the supplement and nutrition company, Artah, and works with clients with erratic blood sugar control. 'Sugar depresses immunity, impacts mood, creates metabolic imbalance and promotes inflammation.' When you eat too much sugar in any form, your pancreas produces increased quantities of insulin to clear excess glucose from the bloodstream. However our cells become resistant to its effect, so more and more insulin is required to keep our blood sugar normal. There comes a point where the pancreas can't produce enough to keep up, and we develop Type 2 diabetes. 'The problem is, sugar is so addictive,' says registered nutritionist Karen Preece Smith. 'If you've ever tried eating just sugar, it's not especially nice. But put sugar and fat together in a cake, and it tastes amazing. It interferes with our receptors. We have ghrelin (which tells us when it's time to eat) and leptin (the satiety gene which tells us to stop eating). But it messes them up so we just want to eat more. We need some sugar in our diet, of course, but it's so moreish you could end up eating sweets all day. ' Eating too much sugar can contribute to heart disease, obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. There is also an increased risk of cancer. 'If everyone just cut their sugar intake by 10-15 per cent it could potentially make a huge difference to the health of the nation in terms of disease risk and obesity,' says Preece Smith. How does excess sugar impact your gut health? It may not make you gain weight but it can negatively impact gut health by disrupting the balance of gut bacteria, promoting the growth of harmful bacteria, and causing inflammation in the gut lining, potentially leading to digestive problems and increased gut permeability ('leaky gut'). It alters the composition of our microbiome and exacerbates IBS, as well as disrupting the pathways of our brain that control appetite, satiety and cravings, Stephenson explains. It also makes us more prone to storing fat, even if we aren't overeating. 'If you're always bombarding yourself with really high sugar meals, you're more prone to fat storage because the excess sugar is converted into fat and stored in fat cells. A lot of people have a diet that, from the outside, looks quite inoffensive. At breakfast, they'll have quick-cook porridge with banana and honey. At lunch, a shop-bought sandwich with white bread. Then some afternoon tea. At night, it's white pasta with a glass of wine. That doesn't sound bad, but when you zoom in, it's all carbohydrate.' How much sugar should we eat a day? The Government recommends that free sugars – sugars added to food or drinks, and sugars found naturally in honey, syrups, and unsweetened fruit and vegetable juices, smoothies and purées – should not make up more than 5 per cent of the energy (calories) we get from food and drink each day. That means adults should have no more than 30g of free sugars a day (roughly equivalent to seven sugar cubes). Bear in mind that a 330ml can of Coke contains 35g sugar, which is 39 per cent of the total carbohydrates. How sugar crept into our diet I spend the first few days of my challenge in shock, reading nutrition labels and throwing out bottles and cans (bonfire of the sugars). It's important to look for the 'of which sugars' figure on nutrition labels (which is part of the carbohydrate information). According to the British Nutrition Foundation, on average in the UK we are consuming between 9-12.5 per cent of our calories from free sugars. Most so-called healthy processed foods contain far too much sugar. The low salt and sugar baked beans I've smugly eaten for 20 years actually contain 3.9g of sugar per half a can. And so many low-fat products such as yogurt are surprisingly high in sugar. 'The problem is there's been messaging since the 1980s about having a low-fat diet, which means there has to be something in its place that's palatable, and it tends to be sugar,' says Preece Smith. 'And now we know protein is so good for you, you get a lot of high-protein cereal bars which are actually just packed with sugar.' What drives my Bounty obsession is that perfect balance of sweet and savoury. 'What people need to understand is junk food companies hire teams of flavour scientists,' says Stephenson. 'And this isn't to find something that's healthy. They're looking for the 'bliss point': that ideal combination of fat, salt, sugar and oil. All this food is very hedonic in nature. You can't willpower your way through when the food has been made to make us hungrier and more addicted.' Why ingredients labels are confusing 'The food industry is quite clever around sugar,' says Dr Zia Stratos, a nutritionist at London's Reborne Longevity Clinic. 'They know we're looking out for it so they disguise it.' It turns out there are more than 60 different names for sugar including honey, maple syrup, agave, molasses, fruit juice concentrate, high fructose corn syrup… It's shocking. I have a mental vision of a conveyor belt of dangerous 'old friends' that I'm waving goodbye to for a month. 'In biochemistry, anything that ends with an 'ose' – fructose, dextrose, glucose, galactose, they're all sugar,' Dr Stratos warns. Syrup is another weasel word she can't stand on packaging. 'A syrup is a sugar regardless of where it came from. Maple syrup is one of the purer ones. But the way they're manufacturing maple syrup and honey now, either they'll add extra sugar, or they process them so much that all the nutrients are gone and all you're getting is the refined sugar compound.' 'People often don't realise they're having a lot of sugar because they have pure agave or Manuka honey,' agrees Preece Smith. 'Yes they're a little bit better because they contain nutraceuticals and polyphenols. But it's still sugar. So actually, their sugar load for the day is equivalent to someone eating several bars of chocolate but because it's healthy sugar, they think it's OK.' What giving up sugar was like week by week Week one For my condemned woman's last supper (actually a book group meeting with friends), I indulge in fizz and pistachio baklava from my local deli. Then it's time to get match-fit. But actually I spend the first few days actively failing to avoid sugar. It's in absolutely bloody everything! I determine to make better choices and stock up on whole fruit (pineapple, mango, pomegranate), gluten-free oats, and pasta. I have a horror of bland food, so spices will be my friend – fresh ginger, chilli, turmeric, along with lemons and limes. Bread is non-negotiable. I don't have the time (or patience) to make my own sourdough but I buy wholemeal bread-making kits which contain 0.7g sugar per slice. Better than supermarket bread which often contains 4g per slice. And it makes the house smell gorgeous. French dressing and sugar-free mustard give salads a proper kick and I buy tamari (gluten-free soy sauce). But I start to dread meals. Several nights I go to bed miserable. 'I've got nothing to look forward to,' my brain screams. Just walking past Gail's bakery is torture. This is all part of the process, consoles Stephenson. It is possible to wean yourself off high fructose corn syrup (it's in everything from cereals to crackers). 'The longer you stay off sugar, the more sensitised you get. Today if I eat something really sweet from a shop, it tastes quite sickly, like it doesn't really have a flavour. Whereas, when you bake at home, you taste the cinnamon, vanilla and the other flavours. It doesn't just have that sugary, ultra-sweet syrup taste.' Week two Things improve with the arrival of a new gadget: I wear Lingo Glucose, a continuous glucose monitor, on my arm for a month which tracks the foods that cause the peaks and troughs in my blood sugar and sap energy and cause inflammation. A little spike here and there doesn't matter, it's when we're constantly bombarded with excess sugar that it becomes a problem. I'm gripped by the data. Ideally my glucose should stay in the 'healthy range' between 3.9 and 7.8 mmol/L. But there are shocks. Four oatcakes take me up to 11mmol/L. As do egg noodles with teriyaki sauce and veg (teriyaki is very high in sugar). As a freelancer, I run around so I can get my glucose down again (or I madly lift 3kg weights in the kitchen ) but I had no idea these 'healthy' foods contain so much sugar. I become the party bore, warning female friends that oatcakes are the very devil. 'It's completely natural for our blood sugar to go up and down for the day,' advises Stephenson. 'But we want it to rise slowly, so we then release the hormone insulin in response, and then insulin tells our cells: OK, you can use this sugar now and our blood sugar goes down more slowly. When we eat things too high in sugar, instead of our blood sugar going up nice and slowly, like that rolling bell curve, it goes up quite sharply. Our body then compensates by releasing even more insulin, and then our blood sugar goes low, almost as fast as it went up. That can leave us hungry, without energy, and feeling shaky and unable to concentrate. When our cells aren't getting that nice, stable supply of energy, it's harder to function.' Week three Watching those dramatic peaks and troughs makes it brutally clear how poor blood sugar control is potentially damaging my body. A single banana spikes my blood sugar to 11mmol/L. Ditto fresh figs (clearly eating Bounty bars has spiked my insulin levels over the years, leading to decreased sugar sensitivity). And I'm not even having added sugar. 'My glucose is fine except when I have meals,' I wail to Sophie Bertrand,a nutritionist who works with Lingo. She laughs good-naturedly and advises me to combine more food to stop surges. The big reveal is food combining stops glucose surges. 'Any unopposed carbohydrate is going to be much harder on your blood sugar. But if you pair it with higher protein and fat, that slows the absorption down,' explains Stephenson. The next day I add flaxseed to my porridge and my glucose finally stays in range. Over the next week I follow Lingo's morning texts and have a low-carb, high protein breakfast of mushroom omelette to keep my blood sugar stable. When I experience a pasta crash, Preece Smith recommends high-protein pasta made from yellow peas or red lentils. The monitor rewards me with a steady line. And I make my own sugar-free cookies (mashed bananas, oats, ground flax, peanut butter, cinnamon, baking soda). They look like prehistoric remains, but satisfy any cravings. Hurrah. Week four A kind friend who is due to stay with me arranges a surprise supermarket delivery of all my old treats. It's amazing to look at a Bounty Bar and feel nothing. Did I really eat this stuff? Encouraged, I stage another intervention. I have been having red wine when out with friends. Interestingly blood sugar monitors can't tell if you've been drinking alcohol because of the ethanol (not considered a carbohydrate or fructose). But for the final week I ditch booze. Sadly it turns out all alcohol is sugar. 'Alcohol is a liver toxin and it disrupts the body's blood sugar regulation,' says Dr Stratos. Technically spirits will spike your blood sugar less than cocktails because they're straight alcohol (with no added sugar) but they're still a liver toxin, she tells me firmly. Wine tends to have more sugar because it's made from grapes (sweet fruit) and because of the way it's fermented. A sweet dessert wine can contain 7g of sugar per glass. I know the only way to stop sleep disruption and anxiety is to give the booze a miss. And I'm rewarded with nine hours of sleep (an all-time high, according to my FitBit). What next? I'm really proud but nervous. What if I slip now the month is over? For a friend's big birthday I indulge in champagne and a slice of Claridge's cake (sorry, not sorry), but my blood sugar barely spikes. And I'm back on whole fruit the next day. I realise I don't mind extra sugar when I willingly choose a one-off 'luxury', but it infuriates me when manufacturers sneak it into bread, condiments, soy sauce. I worry I've become a sugar fascist, trolling the supermarket confectionery aisles thinking: 'What are you eating?' No doubt I'll calm down. I also know I'm going to need some clever treats to help me if I falter. Bertrand recommends dates with nut butter and shavings of 80 per cent chocolate; or hot chocolate made with oat milk and raw cacao powder. 'The higher the percentage of cacao, the more antioxidants you're getting.' While Stephenson advises me to see it less about restriction, more about choice. 'When we're eating way more vegetables, plants, fibre, protein, you might find you don't actually crave that snack. It's more important to think about how to crowd all these good things into our diet rather than focusing on one small sugar-free hack.' I can't quite believe that the sugar gremlin has been switched off in my brain. I sleep better, my skin is clearer and my digestion is calmer. And even if I do have the odd smoothie, my glucose levels remain stable because I've spent a month without free sugar. A follow-up blood test reveals my blood sugar has dropped down from 41mmol/mol to 38, which is in the normal range. Not bad for a month! It's unrealistic to ban sugar entirely. But I feel so much more in control after my 30-day challenge. The irony is I'm eating more now, because I add cheese and nuts to my fruit plate, or porridge to stop the glucose spike, but I haven't gained weight. Best of all unsalted cashew nuts (my new drug of choice) really do taste like fine chocolate to me now. My diet before the sugar detox Breakfast Muesli with sultanas, banana, dried apricot, Greek yogurt. A fruit smoothie and croissant at weekends. Lunch Baked potato and cheese with salad. Bounty bar. Snack Oat cakes and shop-bought hummus. Dinner Homemade vegetable curry or pasta with prawns and veg. Magnum ice cream. After the sugar detox Breakfast Gluten free oats, seeds, frozen berries, banana, flaxseed, peanut butter and Greek yogurt. Poached egg on toast. Lunch Smoked mackerel, lentils, salad with French dressing. Fruit and cheese or nuts. Snack Homemade hummus and carrot sticks, or unsalted cashews with apple slices. Dinner Tuna steak with leafy greens, quinoa or pulses. Mango and handful of cheese/nuts.
