When less is best

We know we should keep sugar and saturated fat levels low but there are surprising ways where the ‘less is more’ mantra can bring health benefits, says Kim Jones

Weed out the UPFS

The fewer ingredients in a packaged food, the better it might be for you. So think “less is more” when reading a food label, suggests nutritionist Rob Hobson, author of Unprocess Your Life.

“UPFS are industrial formulations typically containing lots of ingredients, many of which you wouldn’t find in an everyday kitchen,” says Rob.

“Examples are soft drinks, packaged snacks, processed meats, and ready meals – look on the label for additives such as artificial colours, sweeteners, flavour enhancers, preservatives, and emulsifiers.

“Higher intakes of UPFS are associated with obesity, cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke), type 2 diabetes, inflammatory bowel conditions, depression, poor bone and muscle strength, dementia and certain cancers.”

Avoid foods like this as far as you can, and try replacing some UPF meals you cook on a regular basis with your own homemade versions, like fishcakes, or curry.

“Also, make easy swaps like replacing fizzy drinks with carbonated water infused with fruit, choose sourdough or homemade wholemeal bread over mass-produced packaged bread and replace sugary breakfast cereals with homemade granola,” he adds

Simpler supplements

The same can be said for supplements – fewer ingredients on the label can be better.

“Additives like fillers, e-numbers, glues, lubricants and colours are routinely added to many commercial supplements,” says Aimee Benbow, head nutritionist at Viridian Nutrition (viridian-nutrition.com).

“These substances have no benefits for the body but they make manufacturing easier, so mass production is quicker and cheaper.”

What’s more, some of these additives might actually be harmful. Look out for things like magnesium stearate, which might cause a laxative effect and inhibit the absorption of the content of the supplement. And titanium dioxide, a compound that gives tablets and capsules a uniform colour and which is also used in paint, says Aimee.

“European authorities no longer consider titanium dioxide a safe food additive because of its genotoxic effect,” she explains. This means it can damage DNA which can cause mutations that may lead to cancer.

Go on a ‘choice’ diet

Being given the chance to make your own decisions is typically thought to be a good thing. But a study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found having too many can be mentally exhausting.

It could explain why trawling the shops and choosing between competing brands and deals means we end up feeling bushed after filling our baskets.

Try going on a deliberate limited choice diet to simplify your life. For food shopping, write a list, have a weekly meal-planner plus a set budget and stick to it.

And whittle TV streaming services down to one or two.

Less digital, more analogue

The average person has 80 apps installed on their phone and a stream of texts, emails, messages, social media – and influencers – to keep up with. The trouble is that many of us feel unable to switch off for fear of missing out, which can be stress-inducing. Overuse of tech and social sites has been linked to difficulty focusing and depression and though we can’t completely remove or detach ourselves from our digital world, we can be more selective says Tanya Goodin, a digital detox expert and author of My Brain Has Too Many Tabs Open. “In some areas like reading, preserving memories and connecting with friends, analogue methods might work better,” she says. “So try things like reading a real book at bedtime. A study in the peer-reviewed journal Clocks & Sleep found that nighttime production of melatonin (a hormone that induces sleep) was elevated after reading printed material like a real book. “Reading on light-emitting electronic devices like tablets has the opposite effect – stimulating blue light can disrupt sleep, interfere with your production of melatonin and REM sleep. And if you need to remember something, write it down with a pen. Research has shown that physically writing information down enhances memory retention compared with typing it into your phone or laptop.”

Watch less telly

Research has long shown that too much sitting still and TV watching has been linked to heart disease.

But a study using data from the UK Biobank has also recently indicated those who watched the most television daily – more than four hours – were 24% more likely to develop dementia.

Interestingly, the study showed that computer use had the opposite effect.

People who used computers interactively – not passively streaming – for more than one hour a day were 15% less likely to develop dementia.

Cut back... for a bit

The fasting-mimicking diet (FMD) is a five-day diet high in unsaturated fats and low in overall calories, protein, and carbohydrates. It’s designed to mimic the effects of a water-only fast while still

providing necessary nutrients and making it much easier for people to complete a fast.

Participants in a new trial followed a version of the Prolon diet (prolon.co.uk), developed by the Longevity Institute of the University of Southern California, for three months. They stuck to a FMD for five days, eating plant-based soups and specially made energy bars, energy drinks, chip snacks and tea, then a normal diet for the other 25 days.

Tests carried out at the end of the period suggest that the FMD can reduce biological age by 2.5 years on average, lowering risk factors for diabetes and inflammation plus decreasing abdominal and liver fat.

A fasting diet isn’t suitable for everyone, including pregnant women, older adults and diabetics on certain medication, so always consult your doctor before starting a new regime.

Dial it down

Some 80% of motorists listen to music when driving, but research from Brunel University and Coventry

University found that, depending on what you listen to and how loud you play your tunes, it could have a negative impact on how you drive.

The research found that lower decibels could be best when motoring through cities.

Fast, loud, and rhythmic music with lyrics can lead to mental overload and more risky, unsafe driving. Meanwhile, motorists listening to soft, instrumental music reported lower mental arousal, which can help enhance your ability to stay focused on the road ahead.

Lose clutter

More than a mere annoyance, a messy home could make us feel anxious and unhappy too.

“American research that asked women to describe their home environments revealed that those who described their homes as ‘cluttered’ or ‘unfinished’ had significantly higher levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, in their bodies and more depressed moods throughout the day,” says organisational behaviour expert Dr Libby Sander.

“Chronic exposure to a disorganised environment creates a persistent low-grade fight-or-flight stress response, increasing the risk of long-term health issues such as heart disease and diabetes.

“The effects extend to sleep, with cluttered bedrooms correlating to difficulties falling and staying asleep.”

Want to have a go at conquering some of that annoying clutter?

“Try the 12-12-12 method,” suggests Dr Sander. “It simplifies the decision-making process during decluttering. Identify 12 items to throw away, 12 items to donate and 12 items to find a place for somewhere at home. This approach allows for a focused yet flexible approach to the decluttering process that doesn’t overwhelm.”

Half the effort

A new study published in the journal of the American College of Cardiology found that women can gain all the health benefits of exercise that men do even when they only work out for half as long.

The research showed that, for moderate to vigorous aerobic activity such as brisk walking or cycling, men had to exercise for five hours per week to reduce their mortality by 18%.

But women had to work out for only two-and-a-half hours a week to achieve the same results.

For muscle-strengthening activity, such as weightlifting or core body exercises, women gained the same health uplift from just one session a week as men who had done three sessions weekly.

Women can get further benefits from exercising more than these amounts, but the researchers hope the results of this study might motivate more women to take up exercise in the first place.

‘‘ People whose homes are ‘cluttered’ had more stress hormones