1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:04,400 Millions of us will have made drastic changes to what we eat 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:06,480 because we have been told it will do us some good. 3 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:09,080 But some of what is recommended can be very controversial. 4 00:00:09,080 --> 00:00:11,880 So today we will be investigating the quick fix fads that could be 5 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:14,040 doing us more harm than good. 6 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:21,160 Every day we are bombarded with conflicting information about our 7 00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:22,200 favourite foods. 8 00:00:24,360 --> 00:00:26,560 One minute we are told something is good for us, 9 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:30,680 the next it's not and we're left feeling guilty about what we're eating. 10 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:37,240 We've been wading through the confusion to separate the scare stories from 11 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:41,080 the truth so you can choose your food with confidence. 12 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:52,160 Hello and welcome to Food: Truth Or Scare, 13 00:00:52,160 --> 00:00:54,360 where we go behind some of these big, 14 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:58,240 bold headlines to tell you whether what you can eat really can transform 15 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:01,480 your health or even, as in the case of one of today's films, 16 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:04,000 just keep you from reaching for another biscuit. 17 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:07,680 But what the papers don't always tell us is that lurking behind some of 18 00:01:07,680 --> 00:01:11,760 those reports is advice that could have a long-term impact on your health 19 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:15,880 and if some of the critics are to be believed, could even be dangerous. 20 00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:19,760 So if you want to know the truth about the foods and diets that the papers 21 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:22,000 just can't seem to make their minds up about, 22 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:25,360 then you are absolutely in the right place because we have everything you 23 00:01:25,360 --> 00:01:26,400 need to know. 24 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:31,840 Coming up... Will completely cutting out certain foods from your diet 25 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:35,240 do you any good or could it be a food fad too far? 26 00:01:36,800 --> 00:01:40,520 I just read in a clean eating book recently that a lettuce leaf makes a 27 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:42,440 great substitute for bread. 28 00:01:42,440 --> 00:01:46,960 And the headlines that question everything we thought we knew about fat. 29 00:01:46,960 --> 00:01:51,320 Could it really be true that all we've been told about eating too much is wrong? 30 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:54,960 The report is actually quite misleading and actually that could 31 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:58,120 have quite damaging and detrimental effects on public health. 32 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:06,640 Chris, this first film was something that in a way you and I come from 33 00:02:06,640 --> 00:02:09,280 different sides, different points of view really. 34 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:12,560 We certainly do. Did you know that up to two thirds of people have 35 00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:16,160 considered cutting out entire food groups from their diet because they 36 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:19,520 think it will be good for them? That is more often than not dairy and 37 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:22,800 gluten, which my wife, who is a coeliac, cannot have at all. 38 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:25,160 But you have had to do something similar, haven't you? 39 00:02:25,160 --> 00:02:27,880 I did. I actually quite by accident found out that I was classified as 40 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:34,040 prediabetic and so I was advised by this top doctor that I should really 41 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:37,440 cut out sugar, but he said you have got to cut out carbs as well. 42 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:41,600 So by cutting out carbs as well as sugar it meant that I avoided being 43 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:44,240 a type 2 diabetic and I lost 2st in weight. 44 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:45,640 Well, that's absolutely fine. 45 00:02:45,640 --> 00:02:49,200 It's one thing cutting something out on clear medical advice and it's 46 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:53,480 quite another to do it for lifestyle reasons, and however popular cutting 47 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:56,360 out entire food groups seems to be in headlines like this one, 48 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:57,600 some reports say 49 00:02:57,600 --> 00:03:01,360 it might not actually be that good for us after all. 50 00:03:01,360 --> 00:03:05,120 So I set out whether to see whether exclusion diets are a short cut to good 51 00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:09,000 health or a short-lived fad that could lead to long-term problems. 52 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:14,360 For years the papers have loved to tell us how to eat better, 53 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:18,720 but it seems the days of just cutting down on the bad things are long gone. 54 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:22,720 Now we are being told to cut some foods out of our diets altogether. 55 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:26,720 Whether it's dropping gluten, wheat, dairy, sugar or carbs, 56 00:03:26,720 --> 00:03:30,840 we are told that so-called exclusion diets can apparently do everything 57 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:32,440 from help you to lose weight, 58 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:36,920 boost your energy, and even protect against conditions like diabetes. 59 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:40,600 But the same papers that appear to love them aren't shy about giving them 60 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:41,640 a bashing too. 61 00:03:43,080 --> 00:03:46,560 And I have to say it's going to take quite a lot to convince me that these 62 00:03:46,560 --> 00:03:50,520 diets are a good idea because I've got personal experience of what it's 63 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,520 like for someone who has no choice but to avoid gluten. 64 00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:56,440 Now, my wife is a coeliac, 65 00:03:56,440 --> 00:03:59,960 so I know how hard it is when you are trying to cut out certain food 66 00:03:59,960 --> 00:04:03,880 groups. Why anyone would want to do it voluntarily is beyond me. 67 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:07,560 But Rebecca Hudson from Woking thinks she has got plenty of reasons to 68 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:09,680 exclude gluten from her diet too. 69 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:15,480 I can get quite bloated sometimes and I get quite tired and lethargic and 70 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:17,960 I can get like a few outbreaks of spots and things. 71 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:22,200 I've decided to give up gluten because I think it would be interesting to 72 00:04:22,200 --> 00:04:24,560 see if some of my symptoms go. 73 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:30,400 From what she's read Rebecca thinks going gluten free really could help, 74 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:32,840 so she is going to try it for a month. 75 00:04:32,840 --> 00:04:34,360 And for a bit of moral support 76 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:39,080 she is calling on her boyfriend and school sports coach, John, who will 77 00:04:39,080 --> 00:04:41,240 be trying out an exclusion diet too. 78 00:04:41,240 --> 00:04:44,320 He will be giving up dairy for a month because he wants to cut down his 79 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:46,440 body fat and improve how he feels. 80 00:04:49,720 --> 00:04:52,560 Recently just reading newspapers I read that some people do it to clean 81 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:55,200 out their body and say, "Right, let's try something else." 82 00:04:55,200 --> 00:04:57,720 That's what I believe, but it could be completely wrong. 83 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:03,480 Before they have to give up any of the foods they love 84 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:09,960 the couple have invited Rebecca's twin sister Natasha around for a last supper. 85 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:13,120 So, who do you think is going to find it harder out of the two of you? 86 00:05:14,520 --> 00:05:16,760 John. Yeah, I think John. 87 00:05:18,240 --> 00:05:21,440 Rebecca and John aren't alone in trying something like this. 88 00:05:21,440 --> 00:05:25,240 In fact, it's been estimated that four in ten of us are now following 89 00:05:25,240 --> 00:05:26,280 a specialist diet 90 00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:30,800 and that includes those who have cut entire food groups to help lose 91 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:32,600 weight or even make them feel better. 92 00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:37,800 But dietician Dimple Thakrar thinks it is a food fad that could actually 93 00:05:37,800 --> 00:05:39,040 be dangerous for our health. 94 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:45,560 So, people are choosing to cut dairy or gluten. 95 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:48,320 Yeah. Why are you not recommending people do this? 96 00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,000 OK, so for example gluten. 97 00:05:51,000 --> 00:05:55,880 Gluten is contained in wheat and bread. 98 00:05:55,880 --> 00:06:00,040 If we remove those foods from our diet and not replacing them, 99 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:05,120 we are actually removing a really good source of starch carbohydrates. 100 00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:07,040 You're reducing your energy intake. 101 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:12,160 A good source of B vitamins, of iron, of calcium. 102 00:06:12,160 --> 00:06:17,400 Dairy, again, a good source of protein, a good source of calcium. 103 00:06:17,400 --> 00:06:20,720 So, again, removing those you could become deficient in them. 104 00:06:20,720 --> 00:06:24,720 'The potential side effects could be so serious that the British Dietetic 105 00:06:24,720 --> 00:06:28,680 'Association says that anyone wanting to do an exclusion diet should seek 106 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:30,400 'professional advice first.' 107 00:06:31,440 --> 00:06:37,480 Unless you've been tested and diagnosed by a medical professional and then 108 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:43,080 supported with a dietician, we wouldn't recommend exclusion diets. 109 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:47,920 However, if you choose to do that for lifestyle reasons, 110 00:06:47,920 --> 00:06:53,160 it is really important that you seek the support of a dietician. 111 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:56,280 While Dimple takes a dim view of exclusion diets, 112 00:06:56,280 --> 00:06:58,960 other experts are less critical. 113 00:06:58,960 --> 00:07:03,680 Nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston says some of her clients do say they 114 00:07:03,680 --> 00:07:06,360 feel better after excluding certain foods, 115 00:07:06,360 --> 00:07:09,360 so we asked her to help Rebecca and John through their month-long 116 00:07:09,360 --> 00:07:14,280 experiment. She is paying the couple and Natasha a visit for a pre-diet checkup. 117 00:07:14,280 --> 00:07:16,160 So, how has dinner been going? 118 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:19,640 To see whether the diets do have the positive effects that Rebecca and 119 00:07:19,640 --> 00:07:23,120 John are hoping, Yvonne is getting them to rate out of ten how 120 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:26,360 they feel now, and she will do the same at the end of the experiment. 121 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:31,880 First, marks for how tired they feel, with one being not at all and ten 122 00:07:31,880 --> 00:07:33,320 being exhausted. 123 00:07:33,320 --> 00:07:36,040 Are you able to give that a number? 124 00:07:36,040 --> 00:07:38,200 Four. Thank you. What about you? 125 00:07:38,200 --> 00:07:41,440 When it gets to mid morning I'm like, "I'm really tired". 126 00:07:41,440 --> 00:07:44,640 And if I'm here I really want a nap and sometimes I do. 127 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:47,360 So Rebecca gives her tiredness levels as seven, 128 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:51,080 but both she and John say their biggest concern is with their digestion. 129 00:07:52,640 --> 00:07:55,560 Rebecca, what would you say are your key digestive symptoms? 130 00:07:55,560 --> 00:07:57,720 Sometimes I can just get quite bloated. 131 00:07:57,720 --> 00:08:00,680 Sometimes I go to bed and I'll be like, "I feel really full". 132 00:08:00,680 --> 00:08:03,400 What about you, John? There were a few things that you marked down 133 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:06,360 on your digestive system. Now, this is not a competition. 134 00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:08,840 I know. You don't have to beat her numbers. 135 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:09,880 It is a competition. 136 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:11,760 THEY LAUGH 137 00:08:11,760 --> 00:08:16,680 Rebecca gives herself a six for bloatedness and John gives himself a seven. 138 00:08:16,680 --> 00:08:19,840 He also rates his digestive troubles a three, 139 00:08:19,840 --> 00:08:21,720 but Rebecca has other ideas. 140 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:24,880 That is... Gassy. 141 00:08:24,880 --> 00:08:27,320 LAUGHTER 142 00:08:27,320 --> 00:08:31,120 Should we ask? Should we put gas, as reported by Rebecca? 143 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:34,800 It's bad, it's like a seven. 144 00:08:34,800 --> 00:08:38,960 John's greatest hope for the diet is that he will lose some body fat. 145 00:08:38,960 --> 00:08:40,600 83.4. 146 00:08:40,600 --> 00:08:42,960 So Yvonne takes a whole range of other measurements... 147 00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:45,920 Suck in. 148 00:08:47,600 --> 00:08:50,760 So, I've got some food diaries here for you. 149 00:08:50,760 --> 00:08:51,880 ..before leaving them, 150 00:08:51,880 --> 00:08:55,280 ready to start their month-long diets the next morning. 151 00:08:55,280 --> 00:08:58,080 It will be really interesting to come back to these scores, 152 00:08:58,080 --> 00:09:02,400 back to these symptoms, in a month's time, and see if we've found any changes. Yeah, excited. 153 00:09:02,400 --> 00:09:06,240 Yvonne will keep an eye on the couple's diets over the next 154 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:10,120 month and is optimistic they could both feel healthier. 155 00:09:11,520 --> 00:09:16,360 I am expecting if gluten is an issue for Rebecca to see a change in her 156 00:09:16,360 --> 00:09:20,160 waist. Not her level of body fat, but her level of bloating. 157 00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:22,880 I think with John it's going to be harder to work out whether it's made 158 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:25,600 a difference or not. He is interested in looking at a change in body fat 159 00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:28,800 percentage, but his body fat percentage is already really good. 160 00:09:28,800 --> 00:09:32,760 Yvonne will be back in four weeks' time to see how they got on. 161 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:36,880 But according to some headlines Rebecca and John could end up less healthy, 162 00:09:36,880 --> 00:09:40,200 depending on the foods they choose to replace all that gluten and dairy 163 00:09:40,200 --> 00:09:42,440 they would otherwise be eating. 164 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:44,880 For someone with coeliac disease, like my wife, 165 00:09:44,880 --> 00:09:47,480 there is no option but to go gluten free. 166 00:09:47,480 --> 00:09:50,520 But while only one in every 100 people are coeliac, 167 00:09:50,520 --> 00:09:55,200 one in five have bought or eaten gluten-free products and they have done it 168 00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:59,320 mainly because they believe that gluten may be bad for them, 169 00:09:59,320 --> 00:10:00,800 'and though that means more choice, 170 00:10:00,800 --> 00:10:05,000 'dietician Dimple Thakrar says not everything available will be as healthy 171 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:06,800 'as it might appear.' 172 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:10,960 So, my wife's a coeliac, so she can't eat gluten. Yeah. 173 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:15,720 I've noticed that the "free from" range of products available has grown 174 00:10:15,720 --> 00:10:19,240 exponentially. Yes. How do you think they stack up? 175 00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:21,000 If we look at the fat content, 176 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:24,800 there's probably two to three times more fat in the gluten-free bread 177 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:28,320 than there is in a normal slice of bread. 178 00:10:28,320 --> 00:10:30,920 So... So people... Some people, 179 00:10:30,920 --> 00:10:34,160 could be cutting out gluten... And thinking they are doing the right thing... 180 00:10:34,160 --> 00:10:37,280 Whereas actually they could be increasing their fat. 181 00:10:37,280 --> 00:10:41,320 And therefore increasing their risk of heart disease and weight gain. 182 00:10:42,400 --> 00:10:43,560 Back in Woking, 183 00:10:43,560 --> 00:10:48,080 John and Rebecca are getting to grips with the reality of their exclusion diet. 184 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:50,720 John has cut dairy and Rebecca has cut gluten. 185 00:10:50,720 --> 00:10:54,600 But as their video diaries show, things aren't as easy as they'd hoped. 186 00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:56,680 So I'm feeling pretty annoyed today 187 00:10:56,680 --> 00:10:58,840 and it's all because of coffee shops. 188 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:01,480 They don't really have many options 189 00:11:01,480 --> 00:11:03,960 at all available to anyone that is 190 00:11:03,960 --> 00:11:05,080 "free from". 191 00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:08,280 Pastries, butter in the sandwiches, 192 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:11,520 just dairy in everything. 193 00:11:11,520 --> 00:11:14,200 I went to a cafe with some friends we all got 194 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:15,840 bacon rolls. My little 195 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:21,040 gluten-free roll was half the size and I had to pay more for it. 196 00:11:21,040 --> 00:11:22,280 Blooming ridiculous. 197 00:11:22,280 --> 00:11:25,760 I did have to steal a few tomatoes off the cocktail sticks and a few 198 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:27,400 lettuce leaves. But that was that it. 199 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:28,880 I kind of felt a bit like a rabbit. 200 00:11:28,880 --> 00:11:32,240 Well, later in the programme we'll see if things got any easier for John 201 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:34,720 and Rebecca and if, after a month, 202 00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:39,480 their exclusion diets have made any difference whatsoever to how they feel. 203 00:11:46,000 --> 00:11:49,920 Now, excluding whole food groups from your diet is one way that lots of 204 00:11:49,920 --> 00:11:51,800 people are choosing to lose weight. 205 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:55,160 But if that's a bit extreme and you'd prefer just to cut down, 206 00:11:55,160 --> 00:11:58,520 rather than cutting something out completely then you might go for one of 207 00:11:58,520 --> 00:12:00,840 the more tried and tested ways to lose weight. 208 00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:03,200 So, for example, Chris, if you decide to lose weight, 209 00:12:03,200 --> 00:12:05,920 not that you need to, of course, how would you choose to do it? 210 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:08,920 Oh, I don't know. Low fat foods, I suppose. 211 00:12:08,920 --> 00:12:11,840 Why low-fat? Low-fat foods help you lose weight, don't they? 212 00:12:12,880 --> 00:12:15,080 You see, that's what we've always been told, 213 00:12:15,080 --> 00:12:19,440 but I've been on the trail of the story that said exactly the opposite 214 00:12:19,440 --> 00:12:22,920 and told us to forget everything we thought we knew about weight loss. 215 00:12:25,760 --> 00:12:29,280 For decades fat, particularly saturated fat, 216 00:12:29,280 --> 00:12:31,680 has been public health enemy number one, 217 00:12:31,680 --> 00:12:33,760 as indeed so many of us are aware. 218 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:38,880 It's going to clog your arteries up sooner or later if you keep eating saturated fat. 219 00:12:38,880 --> 00:12:42,240 Well, every time I've joined Weight Watchers I've been told to eat less 220 00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:43,800 saturated fat. 221 00:12:43,800 --> 00:12:46,560 Saturated fats, you have to get them in there because it's part of your 222 00:12:46,560 --> 00:12:48,720 diet, but too much I don't think would be right for you. 223 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:53,720 We've reported on the confusion around the role of saturated fat 224 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,320 in our diet before. But last spring, 225 00:12:56,320 --> 00:13:00,560 it looked like decades of official advice had been overturned when a 226 00:13:00,560 --> 00:13:02,520 raft of new headlines suddenly announced that, 227 00:13:02,520 --> 00:13:06,480 far from being the enemy we'd long been told it was, 228 00:13:06,480 --> 00:13:10,640 that fat could be a friend for anyone trying to slim down. 229 00:13:10,640 --> 00:13:14,600 Unsurprisingly, such a unexpected and controversial message 230 00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:16,760 made a very big splash in the papers. 231 00:13:16,760 --> 00:13:21,320 Now, many, many newspapers reported roughly the same thing. 232 00:13:21,320 --> 00:13:23,360 They had rather similar headlines, 233 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:28,360 and all of them saying that this particular study or report says that all of 234 00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:32,520 the traditional views we have had of trying to lose weight in the past are wrong, 235 00:13:32,520 --> 00:13:36,880 and what we should be doing instead of swapping high-fat foods for 236 00:13:36,880 --> 00:13:39,240 low-fat foods, it should be the other way round. 237 00:13:39,240 --> 00:13:44,320 We should be eating a lot of high-fat foods, even saturated fats. 238 00:13:46,680 --> 00:13:48,720 Now, while it might sound extraordinary, 239 00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:51,840 the report the headlines were based on came from some members of the 240 00:13:51,840 --> 00:13:54,760 health charity the National Obesity Forum. 241 00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:58,680 And it said the Government's advice to reduce the amount of saturated fat 242 00:13:58,680 --> 00:14:02,640 we eat to help control our weight and avoid conditions like heart disease 243 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:03,680 was wrong. 244 00:14:05,240 --> 00:14:07,800 It's such a big sort of wide subject, isn't it? 245 00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:11,560 Trudi Deakin is one of the authors of the report. 246 00:14:11,560 --> 00:14:15,800 She says when the nation turned to low-fat foods we replaced the fat with 247 00:14:15,800 --> 00:14:19,120 carbohydrates and sugar and, as far as she is concerned, 248 00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:23,320 far from helping us to lose weight that's contributed to the highest levels 249 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:24,360 of obesity ever. 250 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:29,960 So, Trudi, practically as far as I can remember back, 251 00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:34,960 the message has always been no fat, low fat, light everything. 252 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:37,040 We live in a fat-phobic nation, don't we? 253 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:41,120 And the science came out in the 1950s and 1960s 254 00:14:41,120 --> 00:14:43,160 and it was bad science, 255 00:14:43,160 --> 00:14:49,120 unfortunately. And at that time there was not one clinical trial 256 00:14:49,120 --> 00:14:54,320 that showed that reducing total fat 257 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:56,560 and reducing saturated fat in the diet 258 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,320 would improve health outcomes at all. 259 00:15:00,960 --> 00:15:03,520 While Trudi might consider it bad science, 260 00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:06,280 those studies were the basis for the Government's first official 261 00:15:06,280 --> 00:15:10,680 guidelines for what we should eat, published in 1983. 262 00:15:10,680 --> 00:15:15,720 But Trudi doesn't think they've had the intended effect on the nation's health. 263 00:15:15,720 --> 00:15:20,400 When the dietary guidelines were published in 1983, 264 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:24,960 then the prevalence of diabetes was 1.4%, it's now 6%. 265 00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:31,000 Wow. Prevalence of obesity was 6% - 8%, it is now 25%. 266 00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:34,800 That's scary, isn't it? So two thirds of the population were overweight. 267 00:15:34,800 --> 00:15:38,200 So people don't get up in the morning and say, 268 00:15:38,200 --> 00:15:42,320 "I want to get fat," but they are following the guidelines and they're 269 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:46,400 having a low-fat, high carbohydrate diet and it's not working. 270 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:49,400 Eating fat doesn't make you fat. 271 00:15:49,400 --> 00:15:54,040 'Instead, Trudi says it's a combination of carbohydrates and processed fats 272 00:15:54,040 --> 00:15:55,200 'that lead to obesity.' 273 00:15:56,280 --> 00:15:59,800 So, where do you stand on what's good fat and what's really bad fat? 274 00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:02,600 The healthy fats are the natural fats. 275 00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:07,040 So avoid the fake foods, avoid the junk foods, avoid the processed foods, 276 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:10,360 let's kind of base our meals on real foods. 277 00:16:10,360 --> 00:16:13,280 Oily fish, butter, lard. 278 00:16:13,280 --> 00:16:16,440 If you turn around and look at the ingredients of butter, 279 00:16:16,440 --> 00:16:18,480 you will see buttermilk. 280 00:16:18,480 --> 00:16:22,320 If you pick up a low-fat spread and look at the ingredients, 281 00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:24,800 how long are they? I mean, they're really long, 282 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,920 full of processed and artificial ingredients. 283 00:16:27,920 --> 00:16:30,240 'And while I can see that that makes sense,' 284 00:16:30,240 --> 00:16:35,000 I worry that headlines declaring that fat is good go against everything we've 285 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:38,880 been told, not least because four years ago my husband, Stephen, 286 00:16:38,880 --> 00:16:40,360 had a small heart attack, 287 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:43,240 and most experts would agree that saturated fat 288 00:16:43,240 --> 00:16:45,960 is one of the causes of heart disease. 289 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:48,800 'But Trudi stands by her report.' 290 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:51,480 I don't mean this unkindly, but are you right? 291 00:16:51,480 --> 00:16:52,600 Absolutely, yes. 292 00:16:52,600 --> 00:16:54,080 I mean, the evidence is there. 293 00:16:54,080 --> 00:16:59,240 Last year a systematic review was published on this very subject and what 294 00:16:59,240 --> 00:17:05,160 they concluded is that reducing saturated fat in the diet does not reduce 295 00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:10,080 cardiovascular disease or heart attacks and does not reduce strokes and 296 00:17:10,080 --> 00:17:12,920 does not reduce diabetes diagnoses. 297 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:18,160 'I have to say, I find some parts of Trudi's argument quite convincing' 298 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:22,320 but I can't shake all that long-standing medical advice about 299 00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:25,480 saturated fat and its link to heart disease. 300 00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:29,160 So I can understand why, when the study hit the papers last year, 301 00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:31,440 it was met with huge criticism, 302 00:17:31,440 --> 00:17:36,360 not least from the Government body responsible for protecting the nation's health. 303 00:17:36,360 --> 00:17:41,640 'Dr Alison Tedstone is chief nutritionist for Public Health England.' 304 00:17:41,640 --> 00:17:43,960 Well, Alison, presumably you've had a look at this report. 305 00:17:43,960 --> 00:17:45,960 Yes. And what's your immediate reaction to it? 306 00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:47,600 Well, it's an opinion piece. 307 00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:51,480 It's setting out the opinion of individuals and they've chosen studies to 308 00:17:51,480 --> 00:17:52,960 illustrate their opinion. 309 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:55,840 So it's not a complete assessment of the evidence. 310 00:17:55,840 --> 00:17:57,280 Do you think it's irresponsible? 311 00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:59,200 Yes, we do think it's irresponsible. 312 00:17:59,200 --> 00:18:03,080 There is evidence to show if you increase your saturated fat intake 313 00:18:03,080 --> 00:18:06,480 you increase your blood levels of cholesterol and that will increase your risk 314 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:07,560 of having a heart attack. 315 00:18:07,560 --> 00:18:10,680 Do you subscribe to the fact that there are any good fats? 316 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:15,080 The advice is as it is for now and that is that all saturated fats 317 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:17,560 should be lower within the diet. 318 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:19,960 When you're choosing dairy products, for example, 319 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:23,160 choose lower fat dairy products, don't choose full fat, 320 00:18:23,160 --> 00:18:26,040 go for the lower fat products. 321 00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:30,880 And there are many who share Alison's concerns about the National Obesity Forum report, 322 00:18:30,880 --> 00:18:34,160 pointing to what appears to be overwhelming evidence that 323 00:18:34,160 --> 00:18:37,480 saturated fats in particular are very bad for us. 324 00:18:39,480 --> 00:18:41,640 So, the report is actually quite misleading 325 00:18:41,640 --> 00:18:43,080 and actually that could have 326 00:18:43,080 --> 00:18:45,960 quite damaging and detrimental effects on public health. 327 00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:48,560 So it's not something I would recommend. 328 00:18:48,560 --> 00:18:54,560 Many years of research and also very recent research published in November 2016 329 00:18:54,560 --> 00:19:00,680 has linked saturated fat with a higher risk of heart disease. 330 00:19:00,680 --> 00:19:04,960 'And while Trudi might say the Government's decades of nutritional advice 331 00:19:04,960 --> 00:19:08,080 'is one of the contributing factors for record levels of obesity and' 332 00:19:08,080 --> 00:19:13,360 type 2 diabetes, Charlotte believes that is unfair because very few of us 333 00:19:13,360 --> 00:19:15,840 actually follow that advice. 334 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:19,840 I think it's important for the public to be aware that actually only about 335 00:19:19,840 --> 00:19:24,280 1% of the population actually adheres to our current dietary recommendations. 336 00:19:24,280 --> 00:19:29,680 So if you look at the fact that around 60% of adults are overweight 337 00:19:29,680 --> 00:19:34,320 or obese and only 1% of people are following the dietary guidelines, 338 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:39,640 it doesn't really make sense that they are causing overweight and obesity. 339 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:43,680 Well, with both sides arguing their evidence is the most convincing, 340 00:19:43,680 --> 00:19:47,400 clearly this is a disagreement set to rage on and on. 341 00:19:47,400 --> 00:19:51,240 And unless the rest of us study in detail what they are really saying 342 00:19:51,240 --> 00:19:55,040 it's all too easy to latch onto just one part of the argument, 343 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:59,840 as perhaps was the case with how the papers reacted to this particular report. 344 00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:05,120 The newspaper will take this document and it will go, "Eat fat, 345 00:20:05,120 --> 00:20:07,440 "get thin," and that's what the public look at. 346 00:20:07,440 --> 00:20:09,160 It has to start somewhere. 347 00:20:09,160 --> 00:20:12,360 It's not easy, but what else can we do? 348 00:20:12,360 --> 00:20:14,680 Ignore the evidence? 349 00:20:14,680 --> 00:20:18,800 But as far as Alison is concerned, the evidence Trudi is pointing to simply 350 00:20:18,800 --> 00:20:21,360 doesn't stand up. It's quite difficult. 351 00:20:21,360 --> 00:20:25,520 We could spend the whole of Public Health England's resources on talking 352 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:29,680 about articles that come up within the press, and we do what we can, 353 00:20:29,680 --> 00:20:33,320 but we also have a job to do, to check the evidence is correct and so on 354 00:20:33,320 --> 00:20:36,440 and so forth. I think the full dietary advice has changed. 355 00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:41,720 It's very important that evidence is looked at in a rounded and consistent and 356 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:43,520 scientific way. 357 00:20:43,520 --> 00:20:48,040 So the official advice that we should cut down on fats remains the same. 358 00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:51,520 And in the meantime, perhaps the most worrying factor in all of this is how 359 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:56,520 easy it might be for people to take an oversimplified message from a bold headline 360 00:20:56,520 --> 00:20:59,680 claiming that you can "eat fat to get thin". 361 00:21:06,120 --> 00:21:10,480 Still to come, we'll find out if our volunteers Rebecca and John feel any 362 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:14,160 different after a month of cutting certain foods from their diet. 363 00:21:15,200 --> 00:21:17,760 I was in a town the other day and I went to three cafes, 364 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:19,880 and no-one could feed me. 365 00:21:24,440 --> 00:21:28,600 Now, Gloria, whatever the theory is about either healthy eating or diets, 366 00:21:28,600 --> 00:21:30,880 there's one thing that for many of us stands in the way, 367 00:21:30,880 --> 00:21:32,760 and that's our appetites, isn't it? 368 00:21:32,760 --> 00:21:34,520 We've all had those days, haven't we, 369 00:21:34,520 --> 00:21:36,800 no matter how much you eat you never quite feel full, 370 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:39,440 and when one or two biscuits quickly becomes the packet? 371 00:21:39,440 --> 00:21:41,240 I've been there myself, I have to tell you. 372 00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:44,840 And sometimes I'm filming all day and there is no food available, 373 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:49,200 and at times I get so hungry that I could eat the table or those papers or 374 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:51,560 anything at all just to get something. 375 00:21:51,560 --> 00:21:53,960 If you could refrain from eating the table and papers till the 376 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:55,320 end of the show... I'll do my best. 377 00:21:55,320 --> 00:21:56,840 ..that would be fantastic. 378 00:21:56,840 --> 00:22:01,280 Well, Paralympian Danny Crates is another one who just can't say no when 379 00:22:01,280 --> 00:22:02,760 it comes to certain foods, 380 00:22:02,760 --> 00:22:06,960 so we sent Danny to see if he could find an off switch for his appetite. 381 00:22:10,160 --> 00:22:12,680 'This is one of my favourite rooms in the house. 382 00:22:12,680 --> 00:22:17,240 'I'm always cooking, snacking and nibbling on something as I cook.' 383 00:22:17,240 --> 00:22:18,920 Just testing! 384 00:22:18,920 --> 00:22:22,840 'All my life I've had what you might call a big appetite. 385 00:22:22,840 --> 00:22:25,560 'As a kid, I used to steal whole packets of biscuits from the kitchen 386 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:28,560 'cupboards, and these days, when I finish my dinner, 387 00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:31,280 'I'll hoover up anything left on the kids' plates.' 388 00:22:32,640 --> 00:22:34,280 Do you know what? What? 389 00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:37,560 Because I only had a little bowl I might have to have a little bit more. 390 00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:41,880 'I have a constant appetite, and it doesn't go unnoticed in my house.' 391 00:22:41,880 --> 00:22:46,040 At night-time he sneaks in some cheese and crackers 392 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:48,880 and oranges, but we know - whenever we come down, 393 00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:51,080 he leaves it all over the floor. 394 00:22:52,880 --> 00:22:54,360 Hello! Just a little bit extra. 395 00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:59,800 'I want to know what controls my appetite and whether anything is going to 396 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:02,080 'stop me finishing off my kids' leftovers, 397 00:23:02,080 --> 00:23:04,960 'because even when I'm full I just keep on going.' 398 00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:11,560 For me, just like my boys, there's some foods I can't resist, 399 00:23:11,560 --> 00:23:14,040 even when I've had a massive meal. 400 00:23:14,040 --> 00:23:17,840 I know I don't need to eat any more but I can always find a little bit of room. 401 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:21,800 And apparently, I'm not the only one who's affected by this. 402 00:23:23,240 --> 00:23:27,520 'Last autumn, this headline hit the papers, and it confirmed everything 403 00:23:27,520 --> 00:23:29,480 'I've always suspected. 404 00:23:29,480 --> 00:23:32,680 'Even when it feels like there's no room left in our stomachs, 405 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:36,200 'lots of us can always sneak in an extra treat. 406 00:23:36,200 --> 00:23:40,280 'The man who was behind the study being reported is Dr Bernard Corfe, 407 00:23:40,280 --> 00:23:42,080 'who says that our brains find it 408 00:23:42,080 --> 00:23:45,480 'all too tempting to override our stomachs.' 409 00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:48,560 I don't seem to ever be able to stop eating. 410 00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:50,200 Is there any reason for that? 411 00:23:50,200 --> 00:23:51,880 Appetite is only part of the equation. 412 00:23:51,880 --> 00:23:55,240 There's all sorts of overrides that come from being presented with our 413 00:23:55,240 --> 00:23:58,760 favourite foods, even the smell of food or the thought of food, 414 00:23:58,760 --> 00:24:01,560 or being in a social setting and eating together. 415 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:05,080 If you're amongst people who are continuing to eat you will continue to 416 00:24:05,080 --> 00:24:06,720 eat, too. So there's all sorts of 417 00:24:06,720 --> 00:24:08,960 overrides that come from your environment. 418 00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:11,560 'And those overrides can be anything from how tired we're 419 00:24:11,560 --> 00:24:13,720 'feeling to how happy we are. 420 00:24:13,720 --> 00:24:18,840 'It can also be about where we are or who we're with or simply just how much we 421 00:24:18,840 --> 00:24:21,360 'love the taste of the food in front of us. 422 00:24:21,360 --> 00:24:25,080 'Bernard says willpower can help overcome those temptations. 423 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:28,600 'But, as I know all too well, that isn't easy.' 424 00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:31,280 Obviously, some people are much better at saying no than others. 425 00:24:31,280 --> 00:24:34,120 Is there a quick fix for those that can't say no? 426 00:24:34,120 --> 00:24:36,400 There are some people who are cutter-downers, 427 00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:38,360 and there are some people who are cutter-outers. 428 00:24:38,360 --> 00:24:41,160 And I know, for me, if I open a packet of biscuits the whole lot goes, 429 00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:44,720 but I can stop myself opening the packet of biscuits in the first place. 430 00:24:44,720 --> 00:24:46,360 And so, knowing yourself, 431 00:24:46,360 --> 00:24:49,800 knowing whether you're better just to avoid getting started helps you to 432 00:24:49,800 --> 00:24:53,280 sort of get a sense of what's going to work for you as an individual. 433 00:24:53,280 --> 00:24:56,160 'But in my house, temptation is everywhere.' 434 00:24:56,160 --> 00:24:59,920 So I guess hoovering up my children's leftovers is bad? 435 00:24:59,920 --> 00:25:01,240 I've been there. 436 00:25:01,240 --> 00:25:03,600 There is definitely calories in children's leftovers. 437 00:25:03,600 --> 00:25:07,160 'So it seems that controlling my appetite's off switch is not going to be 438 00:25:07,160 --> 00:25:09,040 'as simple as I first thought. 439 00:25:09,040 --> 00:25:10,280 'But all is not lost, 440 00:25:10,280 --> 00:25:14,760 'because according to dietician Linia Patel I'm far less likely to overeat 441 00:25:14,760 --> 00:25:16,440 'after meals if I eat foods that 442 00:25:16,440 --> 00:25:18,800 'will properly fill me up in the first place.' 443 00:25:18,800 --> 00:25:22,120 We need to look at the type of foods you're eating. 444 00:25:22,120 --> 00:25:24,920 The first thing that you need to do to help you fill up, 445 00:25:24,920 --> 00:25:26,880 you need to put lots of fibre on your plate. 446 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:30,160 So, fibre would be things like vegetables and fruit or even beans. 447 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:33,720 So what you might do is when you cook your next Bolognese is actually chop up 448 00:25:33,720 --> 00:25:37,880 lots of carrots and celery and mushrooms and peppers and also put 449 00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:41,320 a can of beans in there, because that fills you up instantly. 450 00:25:41,320 --> 00:25:42,680 Then you need to make sure you've 451 00:25:42,680 --> 00:25:45,360 got enough protein, because that keeps you fuller for longer. 452 00:25:45,360 --> 00:25:47,480 'So to test out whether Linia's right 453 00:25:47,480 --> 00:25:51,840 'and feeling full with the right foods CAN help overcome temptation, 454 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:54,880 'I've recruited two self-confessed big eaters, 455 00:25:54,880 --> 00:25:57,920 'Rick and Mark from Basingstoke, who, like me, 456 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:01,400 'can't resist tucking into more than they need.' 457 00:26:01,400 --> 00:26:03,640 Crisps are a big vice for me. 458 00:26:03,640 --> 00:26:07,040 I've got a real savoury tooth, so I really, really like crisps, 459 00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:09,320 so once I start picking I usually can't stop. 460 00:26:09,320 --> 00:26:14,280 Chocolate's my vice. So that's the unhealthy side of things. 461 00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:18,280 'He's probably a bit more...he's more of a grazer with those type of things,' 462 00:26:18,280 --> 00:26:20,680 whereas I tend to sort of binge-eat crisps. 463 00:26:20,680 --> 00:26:23,760 So we sort of... complement each other like that. 464 00:26:25,800 --> 00:26:28,400 'To see if they're reaching for snacks out of habit, 465 00:26:28,400 --> 00:26:32,160 'because they can't resist temptation or because the rest of their diet 466 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:35,960 'isn't filling them up, Linia's going to analyse what they eat, 467 00:26:35,960 --> 00:26:39,560 'and for the last week Rick and Mark have each been keeping a food diary.' 468 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:44,240 So, Linia, the food diaries are in, Richard and Mark's. 469 00:26:44,240 --> 00:26:47,360 Yeah. We'll look at Richard's first. Is there anything glaringly 470 00:26:47,360 --> 00:26:48,680 obvious to you? 471 00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:51,880 Well, what's happening here is he loves his sweet stuff. 472 00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:53,520 So very much a sweet tooth. 473 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:56,240 So a lot of the foods coming through are going to be high in sugar, 474 00:26:56,240 --> 00:26:58,400 which is not going to help him feel full. 475 00:26:58,400 --> 00:27:01,760 Actually, it's just going to make him feel even hungrier and wanting to eat more. 476 00:27:01,760 --> 00:27:06,280 Mark doesn't eat as regularly, but he seems to eat large portions. 477 00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:09,560 So obviously he's eating because he's hungry, but he's eating beyond that. 478 00:27:09,560 --> 00:27:14,600 The other thing is that Mark drinks alcohol, and what alcohol does is it 479 00:27:14,600 --> 00:27:16,560 actually gives you an additional hunger. 480 00:27:16,560 --> 00:27:19,880 So you're much more likely to, you know, give in to 481 00:27:19,880 --> 00:27:23,400 the second packet of chips or have dessert because, you know, 482 00:27:23,400 --> 00:27:25,320 you don't care as much. 483 00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,720 'Linia wants to help Rick and Mark stop eating when they don't need to, 484 00:27:30,720 --> 00:27:34,200 'so she's come up with a menu she thinks should do just that 485 00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:36,360 'by keeping them full all day. 486 00:27:36,360 --> 00:27:39,840 'And it starts with their own individual protein-packed breakfast, 487 00:27:39,840 --> 00:27:44,160 'which Linia says should really fill them up.' 488 00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:46,400 This is breakfast this morning. 489 00:27:46,400 --> 00:27:49,600 This is my poached eggs. 490 00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:54,440 So, breakfast is two slices of wholemeal toast and some baked beans. 491 00:27:55,560 --> 00:27:59,400 'Linia's confident these combinations of protein and fibre will have a 492 00:27:59,400 --> 00:28:03,640 'longer-lasting satisfying effect and stop Rick and Mark's usual 493 00:28:03,640 --> 00:28:05,640 'mid-morning cravings.' 494 00:28:05,640 --> 00:28:08,840 I did enjoy something different for breakfast... 495 00:28:09,960 --> 00:28:13,080 ..and I do feel a bit fuller than I normally would. 496 00:28:13,080 --> 00:28:14,600 So, I ate that quite slowly. 497 00:28:16,280 --> 00:28:18,880 I am quite full, so I'm going to stop eating. 498 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:23,480 I'm going to save my apple for my mid-morning break and see how I get on. 499 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:26,440 'So far, so good. 500 00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:28,560 'A healthy bit of fruit for a snack, 501 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:31,120 'and four hours later it's time for lunch.' 502 00:28:31,120 --> 00:28:32,560 So, lunch today. 503 00:28:32,560 --> 00:28:34,320 And this is for me and Rick. 504 00:28:34,320 --> 00:28:36,840 'Lunch is a veg-packed salad with avocado, 505 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:39,160 'tomato and salad leaves mixed with 506 00:28:39,160 --> 00:28:42,600 'some dressing and topped off with salmon.' 507 00:28:42,600 --> 00:28:46,080 Lunch has arrived. It's something different to what I'd normally have. 508 00:28:46,080 --> 00:28:48,360 'Gone are the sandwiches, crisps and sweets. 509 00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:50,040 'This looks good to me.' 510 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:52,080 That was very nice and I am full. 511 00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:54,840 'Both of them admit to snacking most afternoons, 512 00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:58,800 'but Linia says their favourite crisps and chocolate aren't just unhealthy 513 00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:00,680 'but could send their blood sugar soaring. 514 00:29:01,760 --> 00:29:05,360 'And the crash likely to follow will make them even hungrier, 515 00:29:05,360 --> 00:29:09,520 'so instead she's advised healthier snacks - carrot sticks and hummus - 516 00:29:09,520 --> 00:29:11,560 'which shouldn't have the same effect. 517 00:29:11,560 --> 00:29:13,280 'And it's done the trick for Rick.' 518 00:29:15,040 --> 00:29:18,960 I'd normally reach for something sweet after lunch, but I didn't really 519 00:29:18,960 --> 00:29:20,680 need them. I really did fancy 520 00:29:20,680 --> 00:29:23,760 something sweet but I wasn't hungry for anything. 521 00:29:23,760 --> 00:29:27,800 'However, later on Mark did confess to sneaking in a few cheeky crisps 522 00:29:27,800 --> 00:29:32,400 'mid-afternoon. And for dinner, it's chicken, lentils and lots of veg, 523 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:35,200 'which is so filling there's no room for pudding.' 524 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:42,760 I am a bit stuffed. I would normally have ice cream or some chocolate, but 525 00:29:42,760 --> 00:29:44,520 I'm just full. 526 00:29:44,520 --> 00:29:46,080 I'm done, I think, for tonight. 527 00:29:47,560 --> 00:29:49,560 'Now, it was probably habit, not hunger, 528 00:29:49,560 --> 00:29:52,440 'that drove Mark to reach for those crisps earlier on, 529 00:29:52,440 --> 00:29:54,800 'but Rick was sufficiently satisfied 530 00:29:54,800 --> 00:29:58,000 'by Linia's meals to avoid any extra temptation.' 531 00:29:59,760 --> 00:30:01,680 Looking at what we've eaten today 532 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:06,800 I think has changed my perspective on what I should be eating during 533 00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:08,800 the day to try and stop the snacking. 534 00:30:08,800 --> 00:30:10,440 'And even with Mark's crisps, 535 00:30:10,440 --> 00:30:13,560 'both of them have eaten less food than they normally would on a typical 536 00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:16,000 'day and consumed fewer calories. 537 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:20,080 'And Linia says anyone can do the same by following three simple rules.' 538 00:30:22,040 --> 00:30:24,920 Fill up on fibre, so make sure you're getting some vegetables and fruit 539 00:30:24,920 --> 00:30:27,120 and beans and wholegrains onto your plate. 540 00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:28,600 Have protein on your plate, 541 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:33,400 so include protein, like your meats and your dairy and your nuts, 542 00:30:33,400 --> 00:30:35,960 in your main meals and also your snacks. 543 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:38,920 And then the third is include some fat in your diet, as well, because that 544 00:30:38,920 --> 00:30:41,560 really helps your body feely fully satisfied. 545 00:30:41,560 --> 00:30:46,240 'But, as Mark found, food alone can't always beat habit or temptation. 546 00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:50,360 'Most of us are thought to eat an average of 300 calories a day more than 547 00:30:50,360 --> 00:30:53,720 'we need. So, as Dr Bernard Corfe says, 548 00:30:53,720 --> 00:30:57,280 'the key to switching your appetite off is about more than simply what you 549 00:30:57,280 --> 00:31:00,280 'eat, and it's different for everyone.' 550 00:31:00,280 --> 00:31:02,680 What people need to do is keep a diary of food, 551 00:31:02,680 --> 00:31:06,280 keep a diary of physical exercise and understand, for them as an 552 00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:09,520 individual, that calorie excess is starting to creep in. 553 00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:13,360 And it's by understanding that and then starting to try to change that that you 554 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:16,000 can get control of your diet again. 555 00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:17,960 It's about finding that balance? 556 00:31:17,960 --> 00:31:20,680 Absolutely. It's about the whole of your lifestyle. 557 00:31:20,680 --> 00:31:24,080 It's about identifying how you can expend more energy, perhaps, as well as 558 00:31:24,080 --> 00:31:28,200 taking in more energy, and many people go running or cycling or whatever 559 00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:29,760 so they can eat their favourite foods, 560 00:31:29,760 --> 00:31:32,800 and I'm sure there's lots of examples of that. 561 00:31:32,800 --> 00:31:34,240 'And I'm one of them. 562 00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:37,400 'Though I've retired from professional sport, I'm still active. 563 00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:40,960 'So perhaps I shouldn't be so worried about controlling appetite, 564 00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:42,320 'as long as I'm burning it off... 565 00:31:43,440 --> 00:31:47,280 '..which with any luck means I don't need to feel quite so guilty about 566 00:31:47,280 --> 00:31:48,880 'mealtimes with the kids.' 567 00:31:50,880 --> 00:31:52,680 That's all right, that one. 568 00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:03,160 For a host of quick and easy ideas 569 00:32:03,160 --> 00:32:06,080 to help you stay full for longer, go to: 570 00:32:07,960 --> 00:32:11,400 ..where you'll also find plenty of other recipes on some of the topics 571 00:32:11,400 --> 00:32:13,400 we're covering in this series. 572 00:32:18,480 --> 00:32:21,840 Earlier in the programme, we left Rebecca and John in the middle of their 573 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:24,840 exclusion diet, and I think it's fair to say neither of them were 574 00:32:24,840 --> 00:32:26,760 finding it as easy as they would have hoped. 575 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:30,320 But cutting out entire food groups is part of a new healthy-eating 576 00:32:30,320 --> 00:32:33,560 movement that's gained a lot of column inches lately, 577 00:32:33,560 --> 00:32:37,360 clean eating. While fans say it's a no-diet diet, 578 00:32:37,360 --> 00:32:41,480 critics are saying that it's not only unnecessary but could be dangerous. 579 00:32:41,480 --> 00:32:44,240 So while Rebecca and John get used to their new regime, 580 00:32:44,240 --> 00:32:47,440 I want to find out whether clean eating's all it's cracked up to be. 581 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,840 Two weeks into their month-long experiment with exclusion diets, 582 00:32:52,840 --> 00:32:57,400 dairy-free John and gluten-free Rebecca are off on a night out. 583 00:32:57,400 --> 00:32:59,360 Where have you decided to take me, John? 584 00:32:59,360 --> 00:33:02,280 A lovely Italian restaurant near Woking. 585 00:33:02,280 --> 00:33:07,600 The only problem is that I can't eat anything on the menu. 586 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:08,800 Interesting, John. 587 00:33:08,800 --> 00:33:10,680 We could be moving restaurants. 588 00:33:11,800 --> 00:33:15,840 Exclusion diets involve cutting whole food groups from your diet to improve 589 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:19,800 your health, and these two started theirs because Rebecca wants to know if 590 00:33:19,800 --> 00:33:22,920 gluten is making her tired and causing digestive problems... 591 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:27,720 ..while sports coach John wonders if going dairy-free will help his 592 00:33:27,720 --> 00:33:30,160 digestion and lower his body fat. 593 00:33:31,560 --> 00:33:33,040 Now they're at the halfway point, 594 00:33:33,040 --> 00:33:35,960 they're checking in with nutritionist Yvonne Bishop-Weston. 595 00:33:37,840 --> 00:33:41,440 Hi! Hi, Yvonne. Hello! Tell me, what's been happening? 596 00:33:41,440 --> 00:33:44,800 It's a bit of a challenge at lunchtime at school. All the hot dishes 597 00:33:44,800 --> 00:33:47,280 with the meat in tend to have butter in or cream in, 598 00:33:47,280 --> 00:33:49,480 so I'm struggling a bit on that side. 599 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:52,720 I've been finding it all right. It's very challenging when I'm out and about. 600 00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:55,960 I was in a town the other day and I went to three cafes, and no-one 601 00:33:55,960 --> 00:33:58,280 could feed me. How's that affecting your health? 602 00:33:58,280 --> 00:34:02,000 How are you feeling with these long gaps between meals? 603 00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:04,160 Well, I'm actually feeling pretty great. 604 00:34:04,160 --> 00:34:06,920 I think I'm sleeping a tiny bit better. 605 00:34:06,920 --> 00:34:08,760 I'm not sure if it's a slightly deeper sleep. 606 00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:10,360 I'm waking up a bit more refreshed. 607 00:34:10,360 --> 00:34:11,640 Despite the challenges, 608 00:34:11,640 --> 00:34:14,480 overall Rebecca and John are still feeling positive. 609 00:34:14,480 --> 00:34:16,320 But to see if their confidence lasts, 610 00:34:16,320 --> 00:34:19,480 Yvonne and I will catch up with them at the end of the month. 611 00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:23,880 So, speak soon. Yes. Any questions, get in touch. 612 00:34:23,880 --> 00:34:26,040 And if not, we'll speak again in two weeks. 613 00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:29,840 Thank you very much, Yvonne. Thank you. You're welcome. 614 00:34:29,840 --> 00:34:32,560 But if exclusion diets have proved hugely popular, 615 00:34:32,560 --> 00:34:36,440 hot on their heels has come perhaps the ultimate example of the idea, 616 00:34:36,440 --> 00:34:40,800 a food regime that takes even more commitment, so-called clean eating. 617 00:34:41,800 --> 00:34:44,520 It's less a diet, more a way of life, 618 00:34:44,520 --> 00:34:46,800 championed by celebrity health gurus, 619 00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:51,120 driven by social media and all over the papers. 620 00:34:51,120 --> 00:34:54,360 But for every headline saying it's the key to a healthy and wholesome 621 00:34:54,360 --> 00:34:59,880 life, there's another dismissing it as an unnecessary and dangerous fad. 622 00:34:59,880 --> 00:35:03,680 Among those who have taken clean eating to heart are Christine Sutton 623 00:35:03,680 --> 00:35:05,840 and her husband, Thomas. 624 00:35:05,840 --> 00:35:09,480 When I'm clean eating, I would normally cut out bad starch, 625 00:35:09,480 --> 00:35:13,680 so high-GI-content foods like white bread, most breads, pasta, 626 00:35:13,680 --> 00:35:17,400 and just stick with meats, fruits, veg, nuts, things like that. 627 00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:20,240 Along with those, 628 00:35:20,240 --> 00:35:24,440 the couple also avoid almost all artificial ingredients and of course 629 00:35:24,440 --> 00:35:27,480 processed meats, even the ones they secretly love. 630 00:35:29,240 --> 00:35:31,400 Unfortunately, bacon is absolutely delicious, 631 00:35:31,400 --> 00:35:35,240 but it's not really conducive to that clean-eating mentality and clean-eating 632 00:35:35,240 --> 00:35:38,520 diet and feeling really good about the food that you're putting 633 00:35:38,520 --> 00:35:40,960 into your body. 634 00:35:40,960 --> 00:35:44,080 Thomas says he adopts clean eating when he wants to lose weight, 635 00:35:44,080 --> 00:35:47,880 but Christine tries to stick to the diet as much as possible and says she 636 00:35:47,880 --> 00:35:51,280 can really feel the difference to her health. 637 00:35:51,280 --> 00:35:56,800 I think that clean eating generally makes me feel a bit better, just 638 00:35:56,800 --> 00:35:59,200 generally in life. So I've got more energy, 639 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:02,120 I'm less tired during the day at work. 640 00:36:02,120 --> 00:36:03,160 Mm! Really good. 641 00:36:04,600 --> 00:36:07,320 'But not all experts are persuaded on this one, 642 00:36:07,320 --> 00:36:10,960 'and food writer and journalist Bee Wilson doesn't believe 643 00:36:10,960 --> 00:36:13,080 'the idea has any genuine benefit.' 644 00:36:13,080 --> 00:36:16,040 Can you tell me a little bit about clean eating? 645 00:36:16,040 --> 00:36:20,040 What is it? Well, it's this phrase that's started to pop up over the past 646 00:36:20,040 --> 00:36:23,720 five years, and it's associated with these bestselling food books that 647 00:36:23,720 --> 00:36:27,000 promise that if only you can cut out loads of different food groups from 648 00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:29,680 your diet you will glow, you will be thinner, 649 00:36:29,680 --> 00:36:32,400 you'll be happier, you'll be able to do incredibly bendy, 650 00:36:32,400 --> 00:36:34,640 stretchy yoga moves. 651 00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:39,480 So do we have clean food and do we have dirty food? 652 00:36:39,480 --> 00:36:41,840 Is that the insinuation with this? 653 00:36:41,840 --> 00:36:44,040 Well, that's the suggestion. 654 00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:48,680 The idea is that somehow food is moral in some way and that there are 655 00:36:48,680 --> 00:36:53,720 these ingredients, which include anything from kale to avocado to coconut oil, 656 00:36:53,720 --> 00:36:57,960 that are somehow virtuous and pure, and if you can just put enough of 657 00:36:57,960 --> 00:37:01,080 those in your body you're going to be on some kind of higher plane. 658 00:37:01,080 --> 00:37:04,800 But what I really don't like about it is there is an assumption in that 659 00:37:04,800 --> 00:37:07,600 that somehow there must be other foods which are dirty. 660 00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:12,280 So clean eating includes taking out food groups, 661 00:37:12,280 --> 00:37:16,360 not just certain products but whole groups of food, is that correct? 662 00:37:16,360 --> 00:37:20,080 Yes, so they might say avoid all dairy, avoid all foods with wheat, 663 00:37:20,080 --> 00:37:23,880 avoid all gluten. And if I was offering that kind of dietary advice, I'd 664 00:37:23,880 --> 00:37:27,040 want to have really good backing and evidence behind it. 665 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:31,680 But there isn't any. It's founded on kind of bad science at best. 666 00:37:31,680 --> 00:37:35,760 It's not generally great dietary advice to just tell people to cut out 667 00:37:35,760 --> 00:37:40,160 entire nourishing groups of food for no good reason. 668 00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:43,840 I just read in a clean-eating book recently that a lettuce leaf makes a 669 00:37:43,840 --> 00:37:45,680 great substitute for bread! 670 00:37:46,920 --> 00:37:48,120 'Back in Woking, 671 00:37:48,120 --> 00:37:51,600 'John and Rebecca are nearing the end of their exclusion diets. 672 00:37:51,600 --> 00:37:54,760 'Rebecca has cut out gluten and John has cut out dairy. 673 00:37:55,920 --> 00:37:57,880 'Now is the final weigh-in with Yvonne. 674 00:37:57,880 --> 00:38:01,680 'And it's clear Rebecca didn't find as many gluten-free choices as she'd 675 00:38:01,680 --> 00:38:03,480 'have liked.' 676 00:38:03,480 --> 00:38:05,560 So, how did it go? 677 00:38:05,560 --> 00:38:07,720 Yeah, it was good. It was a challenging month. 678 00:38:07,720 --> 00:38:10,560 I do travel around a lot due to my work. 679 00:38:10,560 --> 00:38:14,200 I was just so frustrated that there weren't options available, because it is 680 00:38:14,200 --> 00:38:17,880 such a big problem. And I think that's where my frustration was coming 681 00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:19,960 from, was "Why don't you have the options?" 682 00:38:19,960 --> 00:38:23,760 Or if you do have the options, why am I paying double the price for it and 683 00:38:23,760 --> 00:38:27,240 why am I paying so much extra for it? It really just made me mad. 684 00:38:27,240 --> 00:38:31,600 I got very passionate about it. Right, OK. So, excluding dairy, 685 00:38:31,600 --> 00:38:35,080 you think you had a better diet as a result or ate more healthily? 686 00:38:35,080 --> 00:38:37,160 I think so. At the beginning not so much, 687 00:38:37,160 --> 00:38:40,640 but when I started to prepare my food a bit more I realised a lot of dairy 688 00:38:40,640 --> 00:38:44,760 was incorporated into naughty, what I call treat food. 689 00:38:44,760 --> 00:38:46,560 I had a high level of fat and sugar. 690 00:38:46,560 --> 00:38:50,200 I actually had to turn them away, so I ended up taking healthier options, 691 00:38:50,200 --> 00:38:54,200 like a bit of fruit rather than the cake that was on display. 692 00:38:54,200 --> 00:38:58,200 'A month ago, Yvonne asked John and Rebecca to choose a number out of ten to 693 00:38:58,200 --> 00:39:02,640 'describe how they felt about key areas such as tiredness and digestion. 694 00:39:02,640 --> 00:39:05,000 'Now, after a month of eating differently, 695 00:39:05,000 --> 00:39:06,720 'she's asking them to do the same. 696 00:39:06,720 --> 00:39:09,600 'So, will any of those numbers have changed?' 697 00:39:09,600 --> 00:39:11,200 Rebecca, before, 698 00:39:11,200 --> 00:39:15,000 you said in terms of your digestive system that the wind and the bloating 699 00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:18,600 was a six out of ten, and you've now given that a score of one. 700 00:39:18,600 --> 00:39:21,680 Yes. Wow. So that's a huge difference. 701 00:39:21,680 --> 00:39:24,640 I was amazed. I didn't really know what to expect, but it really did 702 00:39:24,640 --> 00:39:27,600 improve, so I haven't had any problems. 703 00:39:27,600 --> 00:39:30,240 'Rebecca had also complained about her energy levels, 704 00:39:30,240 --> 00:39:33,720 'not least because she'd frequently need extra sleeps during the day.' 705 00:39:33,720 --> 00:39:38,880 Well, the energy was interesting, because at the huge old age of 24 706 00:39:38,880 --> 00:39:40,640 you were napping in the day! 707 00:39:40,640 --> 00:39:42,920 It would be weird. I'd be doing something and I'd have this 708 00:39:42,920 --> 00:39:44,480 overwhelming feeling of tiredness. 709 00:39:44,480 --> 00:39:47,320 It wasn't a long nap, it was about half an hour. 710 00:39:47,320 --> 00:39:48,960 But you still shouldn't need that. 711 00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:52,320 But I needed it. Yeah, I needed it. That's quite long. I know. 712 00:39:52,320 --> 00:39:54,040 And, amazingly, that's completely gone. 713 00:39:54,040 --> 00:39:55,240 Yeah. I haven't napped at all. 714 00:39:55,240 --> 00:39:59,560 Like, at all. Can I clarify this? No naps! 715 00:39:59,560 --> 00:40:03,120 'So Rebecca's confident she has felt an improvement since giving up 716 00:40:03,120 --> 00:40:07,160 'gluten. And John, too, reckons he's feeling better.' 717 00:40:07,160 --> 00:40:11,320 So, for you, John, the things that really came up for you was the bloating, 718 00:40:11,320 --> 00:40:13,920 which was a seven out of ten. 719 00:40:13,920 --> 00:40:16,280 And that's reduced right down to a two, 720 00:40:16,280 --> 00:40:18,600 so again a really significant difference there. 721 00:40:19,720 --> 00:40:23,160 'But John's biggest aim for the diet was to cut his body fat, 722 00:40:23,160 --> 00:40:26,400 'and Yvonne's weigh-in shows he has lost four pounds. 723 00:40:26,400 --> 00:40:30,400 'He also says he has more energy and is sleeping better. 724 00:40:30,400 --> 00:40:33,840 'But while it would be easy to assume that means the exclusion diets have 725 00:40:33,840 --> 00:40:38,800 'worked, Yvonne says in fact often simply keeping a food diary is enough to 726 00:40:38,800 --> 00:40:40,480 'help you improve your diet. 727 00:40:40,480 --> 00:40:45,360 'So, in this case, which was the key factor, the dairy or the diary?' 728 00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:51,680 How much of this improvement do you think is down to, actually, your focusing 729 00:40:51,680 --> 00:40:54,320 on your diet more and how much of it do you think is actually due to the 730 00:40:54,320 --> 00:40:58,800 lack of dairy? I think 60% focus and maybe 40% dairy. 731 00:40:58,800 --> 00:41:01,320 Taking dairy out just made you a bit stricter. 732 00:41:01,320 --> 00:41:03,840 So could you do it indefinitely, 733 00:41:03,840 --> 00:41:06,640 "No more dairy for me permanently for the rest of my life"? 734 00:41:06,640 --> 00:41:09,480 No. I think life's too short to, you know, 735 00:41:09,480 --> 00:41:11,360 say no to the really good things in life. 736 00:41:11,360 --> 00:41:14,200 But 90% of the time I reckon I could. 737 00:41:15,320 --> 00:41:17,440 'Remember, John and Rebecca only did 738 00:41:17,440 --> 00:41:20,520 'this exclusion diet under the watchful eye of Yvonne.' 739 00:41:20,520 --> 00:41:23,560 If anybody else is looking at this and thinks, "Maybe I would 740 00:41:23,560 --> 00:41:27,040 "benefit from cutting out gluten or dairy"... Yeah. 741 00:41:27,040 --> 00:41:28,440 ..what would you say to them? Well, 742 00:41:28,440 --> 00:41:30,800 the first stop is always check it out with your GP. 743 00:41:30,800 --> 00:41:33,360 If you've been having symptoms for some time, talk them through, 744 00:41:33,360 --> 00:41:35,240 make sure there's nothing medically wrong. 745 00:41:35,240 --> 00:41:38,280 Once the GP says, "No, nothing medically wrong, on you go," 746 00:41:38,280 --> 00:41:43,520 then it's looking at what might be causing the symptoms and only taking 747 00:41:43,520 --> 00:41:45,200 out one food group at a time... Yes! 748 00:41:45,200 --> 00:41:47,760 ..because otherwise it can get REALLY complicated, 749 00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:51,080 and then to do what we've been doing here - to score, 750 00:41:51,080 --> 00:41:54,800 to have a look at the symptoms that you're looking at improving 751 00:41:54,800 --> 00:41:57,360 and see what number out of ten you would give those. 752 00:41:57,360 --> 00:42:00,560 Keep a food diary so that you can look back and say, "Well, actually, 753 00:42:00,560 --> 00:42:03,680 "was it the lack of dairy or was it just I ate better?" 754 00:42:05,760 --> 00:42:09,480 If I'm honest, I still think exclusion diets are a bit of a fad. 755 00:42:09,480 --> 00:42:13,080 But after seeing Rebecca and John so positive about how they feel, 756 00:42:13,080 --> 00:42:15,680 perhaps I'm not quite as sceptical as I was before. 757 00:42:16,640 --> 00:42:20,040 That said, I'd still draw the line at clean eating. 758 00:42:20,040 --> 00:42:21,760 There's no way I'm swapping my 759 00:42:21,760 --> 00:42:25,040 piece of toast at breakfast for a bit of lettuce. 760 00:42:33,320 --> 00:42:36,960 The papers just love a quick-fix weight-loss plan, don't they? 761 00:42:36,960 --> 00:42:41,000 Especially if it's something they can turn into a snappy headline followed 762 00:42:41,000 --> 00:42:45,160 by a list of tricks to tame your appetite or secrets to shed the pounds. 763 00:42:45,160 --> 00:42:48,360 We've all been there once or twice. But, as we've heard today, 764 00:42:48,360 --> 00:42:52,040 taking on board some of those headlines without finding out the bigger 765 00:42:52,040 --> 00:42:55,960 picture too could mean that you're making drastic changes to your diet 766 00:42:55,960 --> 00:42:58,600 that, in the worst cases, could even be dangerous. 767 00:42:58,600 --> 00:42:59,960 You can, of course, 768 00:42:59,960 --> 00:43:03,040 find recipes and ideas related to some of the things we've been talking 769 00:43:03,040 --> 00:43:05,760 about today and, indeed, all of this series at... 770 00:43:08,080 --> 00:43:10,680 And on that note, I'm afraid that's where we have to leave it for 771 00:43:10,680 --> 00:43:13,880 today. So until next time, thank you very much for your company 772 00:43:13,880 --> 00:43:16,360 and from both of us, bye-bye. Goodbye.