Behind the Headlines

New colour-coded food nutrition labels

Wednesday Jun 19 2013

A radical overhaul of how nutritional information is displayed on the front of the packaging of many food products has been announced. The government, food makers and food retailers have agreed the new standardised front-of-pack labelling to...

Misguided claims alcohol in pregnancy helps baby

Tuesday Jun 18 2013

“A glass of wine every day in pregnancy could be good for your baby,” is the entirely incorrect headline in The Daily Telegraph today. Other newspapers reported that drinking while pregnant does ‘no harm’, these claims are also misleading...

1 comment about ‘Misguided claims alcohol in pregnancy helps baby’:

Vegetarian diet linked to longer lifespan

Tuesday Jun 4 2013

'Veg diet key to living longer' reports today’s Daily Express front page headline. Its story is prompted by a large, well-designed, long-term study that looked at whether vegetarians had a different risk of death compared to non-veggies...

1 comment about ‘Vegetarian diet linked to longer lifespan’:

No evidence Nordic diet prevents heart disease

Friday May 31 2013

"Roll out the reindeer and berries for Nordic health fix," The Daily Telegraph tells us, reporting that a Scandinavian diet can lower cholesterol and may reduce the risk of heart disease. Meanwhile, the Mail Online website tells us to…

2 comments about ‘No evidence Nordic diet prevents heart disease’:

No proof coffee causes obesity and diabetes

Wednesday May 29 2013

'Is your caffeine fix making you fat?' is the compelling question posed by the Mail Online website, which goes on to report that a study 'shows five cups of coffee a day could cause obesity.' But the study in question…

1 comment about ‘No proof coffee causes obesity and diabetes’:

Could a mother's lack of iodine harm her child's IQ?

Wednesday May 22 2013

“Mothers’ diets may harm IQs of two babies in three,” warns The Independent. The newspaper reports on its front page that iodine deficiency is widespread among pregnant women…

Could a good mood make you eat more food?

Tuesday May 14 2013

‘Research has found emotional eaters tend to eat more when happy’, reports the Mail Online website. The news is based on a small study looking at whether experimentally altering mood has an effect on the amount of calories a person eats…

Hungry shoppers may choose unhealthier foods

Tuesday May 7 2013

"Hungry shoppers 'buy more calories'," BBC News reports in a story based on a very small short-term and somewhat artificial study. The study examined the effects of people skipping meals due to everything from busy lifestyles to…

Does fish in Mediterranean diet combat memory loss?

Tuesday Apr 30 2013

The health benefits of a Mediterranean-style diet have hit the headlines, with The Daily Telegraph reporting we should, 'Eat oily fish to prevent memory loss,' while the Mail Online focuses on how oily fish can keep the memory 'sharp'...

Sugary soft drinks linked to raised risk of diabetes

Thursday Apr 25 2013

'One soft drink a day increases Type 2 diabetes risk by a fifth,' The Independent warns, reporting on a European study that has examined the relationship between type 2 diabetes and sugary drinks. The study…