Vitamin sea, protein pacing and carb practice

Packed with goodness, seaweed is the nutritional wave of the future

WASHING UP at high-end restaurants, health-food stores and even supermarkets, seaweed is one of the year’s hottest food trends. Served fresh, like a vegetable, or in guises as diverse as pasta, soup and savoury snacks, and even as an ingredient in bread, it’s nothing if not versatile – and research shows it’s good for you, too. A Danish study published last year showed that certain compounds in seaweed could help reduce cardiovascular-disease risk, while scientists from Newcastle University found that alginate, abundant in brown seaweed, helps to fortify the gut wall. Most seaweed varieties are high in fibre, low in calories and rich in micronutrients, including vitamins A and B, calcium and iodine. Here’s how to go green (or brown, or red)…