The FastDay Forum

[carieoates]

Wow it was well done, we may know much of what was reported but the facts were well presented.
Let's hope that it has educated some people who then use the info to reduce their sugar consumption. The sugars in fruit juices and fizzy drinks will be a shock to many people and just seeing the weight reduction of the shows participants should be enough incentive for some.

I missed that programme last night because my mum wanted to watch "Banished" (nothing sweet in that!) I'll have to watch it on iPlayer if you think it's good.
There was a programme the night before about diets that make you live longer. Giles Coren was trying different methods including fasting and Paleo diet. When it got to the bit where a guy was about to kill his lamb he had in the garden so he could eat it raw, I switched over. That's not entertainment for me.
Anyway, going back to sugar. Is there an alternative sweetner that DOESNT have an aftertaste?

I was really looking forward to this programm and I was very disappointed with it. I was expecting some new research on the effects of sugar on our system. How we can overcome sugar addiction etc. We all know sugar makes us fat, we know that fat leads to lots of illnesses. Apart from maybe the fact that some products had more sugar content than I would have imagined (22tsp in ginger) I have taken absolutely nothing away as a sugar addict. In fact I felt rather depressed, hearing that we are hard wired and there is nothing you can do.

I found her interview with the lady from the Food Standard Agency embarrassing asking her to record sugar content in tea spoons, as if that had anything to do with anything. I found it patronising that she "challenged" her on making it compulory that we should be warned via traffic light system, because we can't possibly read and understand the metric system. I also find it infuriating when programmes try not to blame the individual but the government or the food industry. I don't think anybody gets overweight because of the sugar level in baked beans or a ready meal. We (and I am one of them) eat too many chocolates, biscuits, cakes etc and they scream sugar at you. I wanted to hear about the science of ordinary carbs spiking insulin, making us crave more carbs and sugar. Sorry about the rant, but I was looking forward to this programme.

Oh, there was one (positive) info that they did mention and that is that there is no scientific evidence that sweetners are carcinogenic.

Oh dear! Sorry to hear you were so disappointed @leramul I was going to watch it on iPlayer but d'you think I should put that hour to better use?

@nursebean. Still think it is a watch imho. Even though we all know about sugar here on this forum, I thought it was a balanced review. I don't know about anyone else, but I also underestimated the amount of sugar in some of the products she was surveying. I was higher than the participants, but not high enough in some instances. I guess we know about sugar in most things but on some of them I was surprised by the sheer quantitiy.

Did anyone watch Giles Coren's programme on Longevity? Again nothing new (although I think he overstated how much meat paleo's actually eat) but I enjoyed it more than the sugar programme. He clearly cares about his health.

I felt the same way as you @ieramul. I could not believe my ears when they said that sugar does not directly cause type 2 diabetes. And the problem with sugar is not the calories it contains, it is the havoc it wreaks with insulin levels and blood sugar levels.

I was a bit surprised about the level of ignorance about the amount of sugars in food (how come no mention of high fructose corn syrup)?

The most interesting bit was the lab where volunteers were testing product containing different levels of sugar. Bit disturbing that manufacturers go with the preferences of people some of whom are clearly obese. What is wrong with selling tomato soup with no sugar and people who want it sweeter spooning in however many teaspoons they like and stirring It in?

We don't all crave sugar, there are many people who have given it up. It can be hard, but believing you are almost doomed to fail does not help.

I did admire the 4 guinea pigs though, especially the lady who ditched ready meals and cooked from scratch after a hard day on the road. I wanted to hug her and tell her about some of my Lazy Cow techniques.

@barbarita,oh please do tell what your Lazy Cow techniques are, I'm intrigued (being anything for an easy life sort of person myself!).

@nursebean, as long as you don't expect anything you don't already know and just want to have a reminder about how much sugar is present in everyday savoury products as a flavour enhancer, then you should be OK.

I totally agree with you @barbarita, I also could not believe they let overweight people who most likely love sugar, judge the sugar level we should all enjoy? And yes, the four volunteers did very well and learned to cook from scratch. However, they should also have had a few slim volunteers and check out their blood levels but that would not have made for such dramatic TV.

All the evil of sugar seemed to have been as a result of getting fat but I think they should have stressed that sugar is bad for you even if you are slim because of the zero nutrient content. For example, a slim person who is addicted to sugar is also endagering their health because their body does not get enough necessary nutrients and therefore will suffer malnutition. As I am getting older and my calorie needs significantly reduced (which is why I need to fast) I can't afford to waste 400 - 500 calories on a bar of chocolate or biscuits on a daily basis. Well I am trying to get rid of my sugar addiction somehow - it is my resolution for 2015.

Okay @callyanna, here goes.

Spinach omelette:- in the morning, put 5 nuggets of Sainsbury's frozen chopped spinach in a bowl to defrost. About 30 minutes before eating time, put about two teaspoons of coconut oil in a ceramic pan and put on low heat. Break 3 eggs into a mixing bowl and grind some black pepper and Himalayan salt on top. Beat for a while with hand whisk and when oil has melted put into pan. When eggs are just firm, tip in the spinach and gently spread on top. Fold in half and serve with an Aldi Mediterranean salad.

Fish and veg: Put approx two teaspoons of coconut oil in a ceramic pan and put on lowest heat. When melted, add a slab of frozen cod or haddock, and some bits of frozen broccoli and cauliflower. Cover and cook for an hour.

Prawn and avocado salad: Empty an Aldi Mediterranean salad into a larger bowl. Scoop out the flesh of one avocado and add. Add some defrosted frozen cooked prawns. Optional extras - cherry or plum tomatoes, olives or mixture of olives, roast pepper, Sun-dried tomatoes from the olive bar pick-n-mix. I cannot guarantee they don't put sugar in the dressings. My own dressing contains only organic cyder vinegar and organic EVO oil.

Copyright Lazy Cow kitchenworks.

I am not proud

great ideas @barbarita, love the sound of the fish one especially. Wish I liked avocado but despite all it's health benefits I just can't stomach it! Do use a lot of coconut oil in cooking though. Many thanks!

@barbarita i cant stop chuckling about the name Lazy Cow products! X
Like yr recipes...and i use coconut oil at times on my skin but not in cooking..doesnt it make things taste too...coconutty? Not sure i' d like that taste with eggs or fish x

I wasn't overly impressed with the sugar programme but my main observation was that I was surprised that the lady who ate cake and chocolate for breakfast and had a real sweet tooth wasn't loads bigger to start with!

I watched the programme and although I felt it told me nothing I didn't already know, thanks to being here, I do feel that it was aimed at a wider audience that is not as well educated in nutrition etc. as folk on this forum are. It was not as dumbed down as I expected and I was very glad to see the, simplistic but effective, piece on eating whole fruit as opposed to guzzling fruit juice which a lot of people believe is very good for you and healthy, perhaps this will make them think a bit more deeply next time they put a couple of litres in their supermarket trolley although I seriously doubt it. Fiona Phillips is not my favourite presenter although I did feel she made a reasonable job of most of it but felt it could have been a bit more hard hitting even though it was nice to see the 4 participants make such great progress, I hope they keep it up.

Ballerina x

Found myself muttering *shouting* at the screen for both programmes @Ballerina, but agree with you that the level aimed at was reached. I rather like the idea of a sugar tax, money to NHS not govnmnt, though the poorest as usual would probably end up being the worst hit :0(
The thing is, the thing we individually are striving for, is body balance, isn't it?
I'm currently enjoying 2 days fasting, 2 days of eating chicken (roast it Saturday, remains cold on Sunday), and 3 days of fish, all with veggies/salad/stirfry/soup, keeping the carbs well below 100g a day, protein around 70g, calories varying between 1500-1700 on feed days, 400-700 on fast days.
My constant aim for a year now is to remove gluten and sugar from my diet 95% of the time. It's working.
I'd very much like to live forever please :0)