You’ve probably read the stories proclaiming that eating blueberries reduces your risk of dementia, or red wine is good for your heart, or coffee protects against type 2 diabetes – or, indeed, many of the other big health claims for a particular “superfood”. But what is the truth in these statements?
While we – a group of nutritional scientists – have been involved in this kind of research, we are not responsible for the headlines. Underneath those attention-grabbing stories, however, there is important and serious research that will help to keep us all happier and healthier.
We study parts of foods called bioactives that have an effect on health (either good or bad). Unlike vitamins and minerals, bioactives, such as certain fatty acids, fibre or flavanols (a group compounds found, for example, in tea or apples), are not essential for survival, but still affect our health.
