If you want to improve your health and well-being, it is important to know what we should eat, which is why we spoke to Food for Life author Professor Tim Spector OBE. By making healthy food choices, you can improve your overall health and well-being and set a good example for your children. Knowing what you are eating empowers you to make informed decisions about your diet, promotes better nutrition and health, helps manage allergies or intolerances, aligns with dietary preferences and restrictions, ensures food safety, and supports sustainability efforts. It allows you to take control of your nutrition, well-being, and the impact your choices have on yourself and the environment.

There are many reasons why it is important to know what you are eating. Here are a few of the most important ones:

• To maintain a healthy weight. The foods you eat have a big impact on your weight. Eating too many unhealthy foods can lead to weight gain, while eating healthy foods can help you maintain a healthy weight.
• To improve your overall health. The foods you eat can also affect your overall health. Eating a healthy diet can help reduce your risk of developing chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes.
• To have more energy. The foods you eat can also affect your energy levels. Eating healthy foods can give you more energy throughout the day, while eating unhealthy foods can leave you feeling tired and sluggish.
• To improve your mood. The foods you eat can also affect your mood. Eating healthy foods can help improve your mood and reduce stress, while eating unhealthy foods can make you feel more irritable and anxious.
• To set a good example for your children. The foods you eat can also set a good example for your children. If you eat healthy foods, your children are more likely to do the same.

Understanding the composition of your food allows you to make informed choices about your diet. Also eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring. There are many delicious and healthy foods to choose from. So experiment and find the foods that you enjoy the most.

So why should we know what to eat?

Thanks to the following guests for participating:

Tim Spector is a professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London and honorary consultant physician at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals in London. He is a multi-award-winning expert in personalised medicine and the gut micro-biome. He is also the author of five books, including the bestsellers Spoon-Fed and The Diet Myth. He appears regularly on TV, radio and podcasts around the world, and is one of the top 100 most cited scientists in the world. He is co-founder of the personalised nutrition company ZOE and leads the world’s biggest citizen science health project, the ZOE Health study. He was awarded an OBE in 2020 for his work fighting Covid-19. We spoke about his latest book Food for Life: The New Science of Eating Well.

Yanira Puy, executive business woman, speaker, and certified wellness coach.

Shahada Karim, ayurvedic nutritionist and movement therapist.

Hortense Julienne, founder of Miss Nang Treats and charity trustee.

Kim Kulp, registered dietitian, speaker and gut health expert.

Lisann Valentin, actor, author and intuitive coach.

Patricia Kolesa, registered dietician.

Abigail Ireland, founder of leadership and training consultancy called Understanding Performance.

Here are some of the resources from the show:

Michael Pollan is a journalist and professor at UC Berkeley. He is a well-known author in the field of good sociology, science and evolution. In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto was number one on the New York Times Non-Fiction Best Seller List for six weeks.

Books looked at this week:

Professor Tim Spector OBE: Food for Life: The New Science of Eating Well

Michael Pollan: In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto

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