The Optimise Health Blog

So who told us it was OK to drink diet coke till it came out of our ears? Well unsurprisingly soft drinks manufacturers were the main culprits for mainstreaming fizzy pop into our homes and lives with their agenda of increased sales and profits at the expense of our health. Their marketing created iconic links between: Coke and Football / Father Christmas, Basketball with PepsiMax and 7UP/Sprite; Lucozade with any sport; finally Dr Peppers with general craziness! Recent research in the US has linked cola, pop and other fizzy drinks containing artificial sweeteners like Aspartame to a higher risk of developing diabetes, obesity, heart disease and high blood pressure amongst other ailments. On one level you should stop the pop to reduce unnecessary calories and caffeine and save your teeth. On another you should stop drinking stuff containing sweeteners becuase of aforementioned risks. On another - WHY DO YOU NEED TO DRINK IT ANYWAY? When I work an Emergency GP night shift I w...

Is your bread making you ill? How 2011's loaves are bad for you | Mail Online Everyone tells you to give up carbs. Well we do eat alot of bread in the UK /Western diet - bread and potatoes and pasta are really our staples. Bread has changed over the years and now contains many additives which may not be so good for you. Have a read of the link article above to find out more. My advice? Don't eat too much bread or rely on it as your only source of carbs - eat potatoe, rice, pasta, coucous, oats etc so you vary your diet and in the right proportions shown in the healthy eating plate post below, matched only by the same volume of vegetables and fruit in your daily intake. White bread is especially bad and you'd be surprised how much pure refined sugar actually goes into making it- try making it or look at a recipe. Go for granary or wholemeal with seeds - it contains more fibre and is more nutritious; best of all bake your own at the weekend with a bread make...