Demi
Fri, Aug-24-07, 03:53
The Times
London, UK
24 August, 2007
Does eating at night make you fatter?
Guinness is good, but E numbers are bad? Our correspondent sorts the food facts from the old wives tales
Amanda Ursell
There is as much caffeine in a mug of tea as in a cup of coffee
In most cases, no. A mug of tea has around 40–60mg of caffeine, depending on how long it is allowed to brew. The longer it brews, the more likely it is to have closer to 60mg per mug. A cup of instant coffee has around 65mg of caffeine, while a cup of ground coffee has more like 115. A large coffee from a high street coffee shop can provide 200mg. Remember a can of cola also adds 20mg; a small bar of chocolate 20mg and a typical cold remedy or energy drink about 20-40mg. It is recommended that you stick to no more than five or six caffeine-containing drinks a day and fewer (two or three) if you are pregnant or have heart or kidney problems.
Eating at night makes you fat
Nonsense. Our bodies do not process calories differently after dark. It is the total number of calories you eat over 24 hours that determines your weight, not when you eat. That said, spacing meals out evenly over the day will usually help you to control your hunger.
You can’t digest protein and carbohydrate at the same time
Not true. Our digestive systems are perfectly capable of secreting enzymes that break down protein and carbohydrate simultaneously. Many foods that we think of as carbohydrate, such as bread, also contain 17 per cent protein, while milk, which we think of as a protein food, contains 26 per cent carbohydrate.
Guinness is good for you
A pint of Guinness gives you about 1mg of iron. Men need 9mg a day and women 15mg daily and so it is not a brilliant source. It is also worth remembering that iron from nonanimal sources is not absorbed very well. A pint of Guinness also gives you two units of alcohol and 172 calories. A 4oz steak gives you 166 calories and 2mg of easily absorbed iron.
Your body craves the foods it needs
Not true. No one physically needs chocolate but we still crave it. Cravings are almost always psychologically and emotionally based.
You should not eat carbohydrates after 5pm
There is no technical reason for this. By banning carbohydrates you are banning foods such as crisps, biscuits, puddings and chocolate, which are favourites to munch on in the evening. If this works for you as a way of controlling your weight fine, but there is no other reason to ban them. In fact, a bowl of pasta or a light risotto can help you to relax, and research from Australia suggests may even help promote sleep.
You don’t need to eat more calories when pregnant
This is true for the first six months. In the final three months you need only 200 calories extra a day – that is equivalent to a thick slice of toast and a banana, or a yoghurt and an apple.
Red wine is good for your heart
Actually, any alcohol, not just red wine, appears to help lower bad chol-esterol. However, it is only one or two units a day that has this benefit. More can have the opposite effect.
All additives are bad for us
If an additive has a E number then the EU has decided that it is safe. That said, some people have reactions to certain additives. For example, those with asthma should avoid some preservatives, such as bezoates (E210 to E217). Azo dyes (Es 102, 104, 110, 122, 124, 124, 128 and 155) may trigger hyperactivity in children. The best advice is to eat simple, home-cooked food.
We need more food in winter
Before the days of central heating it was true that we needed more calories to help sustain us through the cold season. Now this is not necessary, but we still have the evolutionary urge to eat more. Tuck into low-calorie comfort foods such as vegetable soups and baked apples or stewed fruits to warm you up.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/healthy_eating/article2315043.ece
London, UK
24 August, 2007
Does eating at night make you fatter?
Guinness is good, but E numbers are bad? Our correspondent sorts the food facts from the old wives tales
Amanda Ursell
There is as much caffeine in a mug of tea as in a cup of coffee
In most cases, no. A mug of tea has around 40–60mg of caffeine, depending on how long it is allowed to brew. The longer it brews, the more likely it is to have closer to 60mg per mug. A cup of instant coffee has around 65mg of caffeine, while a cup of ground coffee has more like 115. A large coffee from a high street coffee shop can provide 200mg. Remember a can of cola also adds 20mg; a small bar of chocolate 20mg and a typical cold remedy or energy drink about 20-40mg. It is recommended that you stick to no more than five or six caffeine-containing drinks a day and fewer (two or three) if you are pregnant or have heart or kidney problems.
Eating at night makes you fat
Nonsense. Our bodies do not process calories differently after dark. It is the total number of calories you eat over 24 hours that determines your weight, not when you eat. That said, spacing meals out evenly over the day will usually help you to control your hunger.
You can’t digest protein and carbohydrate at the same time
Not true. Our digestive systems are perfectly capable of secreting enzymes that break down protein and carbohydrate simultaneously. Many foods that we think of as carbohydrate, such as bread, also contain 17 per cent protein, while milk, which we think of as a protein food, contains 26 per cent carbohydrate.
Guinness is good for you
A pint of Guinness gives you about 1mg of iron. Men need 9mg a day and women 15mg daily and so it is not a brilliant source. It is also worth remembering that iron from nonanimal sources is not absorbed very well. A pint of Guinness also gives you two units of alcohol and 172 calories. A 4oz steak gives you 166 calories and 2mg of easily absorbed iron.
Your body craves the foods it needs
Not true. No one physically needs chocolate but we still crave it. Cravings are almost always psychologically and emotionally based.
You should not eat carbohydrates after 5pm
There is no technical reason for this. By banning carbohydrates you are banning foods such as crisps, biscuits, puddings and chocolate, which are favourites to munch on in the evening. If this works for you as a way of controlling your weight fine, but there is no other reason to ban them. In fact, a bowl of pasta or a light risotto can help you to relax, and research from Australia suggests may even help promote sleep.
You don’t need to eat more calories when pregnant
This is true for the first six months. In the final three months you need only 200 calories extra a day – that is equivalent to a thick slice of toast and a banana, or a yoghurt and an apple.
Red wine is good for your heart
Actually, any alcohol, not just red wine, appears to help lower bad chol-esterol. However, it is only one or two units a day that has this benefit. More can have the opposite effect.
All additives are bad for us
If an additive has a E number then the EU has decided that it is safe. That said, some people have reactions to certain additives. For example, those with asthma should avoid some preservatives, such as bezoates (E210 to E217). Azo dyes (Es 102, 104, 110, 122, 124, 124, 128 and 155) may trigger hyperactivity in children. The best advice is to eat simple, home-cooked food.
We need more food in winter
Before the days of central heating it was true that we needed more calories to help sustain us through the cold season. Now this is not necessary, but we still have the evolutionary urge to eat more. Tuck into low-calorie comfort foods such as vegetable soups and baked apples or stewed fruits to warm you up.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/healthy_eating/article2315043.ece