EAT FAT,
LIVE LONGER?
After decades of distrust, fat is slowly reaffirming
its position as “good guy” in the food pyramid. A
new mouse study reveals just how marvellous that
white squidgy stuff can be. Researchers at UC Davis
School of Veterinary Medicine raised laboratory mice
on either a high-carb diet, a low carb/high fat diet
or a ketogenic diet (where carbohydrate intake is so
low the body starts burning fat stores). The results
surprised even the researchers. “We expected some
differences, but I was impressed by the magnitude we
observed,” said lead author Jon Ramsey. “A 13 percent
increase in median life span for the mice on a high fat
vs high carb diet. In humans, that would be seven to
10 years. But equally important, those mice retained
quality of health in later life.”GOURMET
HEALTH
THE SOURCE
NO PALM
OIL, PLEASE
If you are an advocate for rainforests and
our friendly furry forbears, you may want
to pay attention. A new ‘no palm oil’ certi-
fication company has arrived in Australia.
The Melbourne-based not-for-profit is
set on curbing the use of non-sustainable
palm oil through its no
palm oil certification
system. Once ver-
ified, companies
pay a small fee
to display the
‘no palm oil’
logo, with
all profits
going towards
rainforest
conservation and
reforestation work.What you ‘think’ you
eat, not what you eat
We all know how powerful thoughts can be but have you ever considered
how much they inf luence your eating habits? A recent study by the
Rowett Institute revealed just how inf luential thoughts can be on
calorie intake. Researchers gave a total of 26 participants each the same
breakfast (a three egg omelette) over two laboratory visits. Participants
believed they were either consuming a two or three egg omelette. Despite
the omelettes actually being the same size, participants consumed more
throughout the day and reported more hunger if they believed the
omelette to be smaller.First vegan
flavour enhancer
Being vegan can be hard, especially
when the vegan-friendly alternatives
are laced with hidden non-vegan flavour
enhancers. Fear not vegan friends, an
alternative is finally here. Sustainability-
focused international chemical company
WACKER has produced the first vegan
L-cysteine. The flavour enhancer is based
on starch fermentation and thus free
from any animal derivatives or animal
involvement. It is said to bring a rich taste
to savoury foods.