Dr. Sarah Berry

You've got cheese, you've got yogurt, you've got butter, you've got milk. And how they impact our health is vastly different depending on whether it's a liquid, a solid, it's fermented, it's non-fermented, et cetera, et cetera. And grouping them all together is as ridiculous as grouping all these snacks together in terms of their health effects.

You've got cheese, you've got yogurt, you've got butter, you've got milk. And how they impact our health is vastly different depending on whether it's a liquid, a solid, it's fermented, it's non-fermented, et cetera, et cetera. And grouping them all together is as ridiculous as grouping all these snacks together in terms of their health effects.

And what we now know is that some dairy is actually good for us. So some dairy like cheese. like yoghurt, and I don't mean this really kind of heavily sweetened sugary yoghurt. I mean like your Greek yoghurts, your kaffirs, those sorts of things, your plain yoghurts. They've undergone a process called fermentation, and that changes the food matrix.

And what we now know is that some dairy is actually good for us. So some dairy like cheese. like yoghurt, and I don't mean this really kind of heavily sweetened sugary yoghurt. I mean like your Greek yoghurts, your kaffirs, those sorts of things, your plain yoghurts. They've undergone a process called fermentation, and that changes the food matrix.

So again, we're coming back to that whole importance of the structure of the food. And by changing the food matrix, changes how our body handles it, how our bodies, the health effect changes. We don't fully understand how. There's some great research being undertaken at Reading University really diving into this.

So again, we're coming back to that whole importance of the structure of the food. And by changing the food matrix, changes how our body handles it, how our bodies, the health effect changes. We don't fully understand how. There's some great research being undertaken at Reading University really diving into this.

But what we know is if you have cheese within reason, if you have yogurt within reason, it does not increase your cholesterol despite being high in saturated fat. Now, I have to caution that I'm not saying people should go and have you know, 300 grams of cheese every day.

But what we know is if you have cheese within reason, if you have yogurt within reason, it does not increase your cholesterol despite being high in saturated fat. Now, I have to caution that I'm not saying people should go and have you know, 300 grams of cheese every day.

But within normal kind of intakes of a few portions a day, it does not increase people's cholesterol having cheese or having, you know, good yogurt. Butter, on the other hand, we do know does increase your cholesterol. Now, if you're having it at the kind of level that you would maybe just putting on a bit of toast, I wouldn't worry so much. But we do know that if you were to compare cheese...

But within normal kind of intakes of a few portions a day, it does not increase people's cholesterol having cheese or having, you know, good yogurt. Butter, on the other hand, we do know does increase your cholesterol. Now, if you're having it at the kind of level that you would maybe just putting on a bit of toast, I wouldn't worry so much. But we do know that if you were to compare cheese...

versus butter, which has almost the same fat composition. And this has been shown in randomised control trials. The butter will increase your cholesterol, but the cheese will not.

versus butter, which has almost the same fat composition. And this has been shown in randomised control trials. The butter will increase your cholesterol, but the cheese will not.

No, the evidence does not support that. So we know that people who consume nuts... based on the totality of the evidence, do not gain weight. We know this from epidemiological data, i.e. people who consume more nuts tend to quite often have a lower BMI.

No, the evidence does not support that. So we know that people who consume nuts... based on the totality of the evidence, do not gain weight. We know this from epidemiological data, i.e. people who consume more nuts tend to quite often have a lower BMI.

Now, that could be confounded by the fact that nut consumers, and only about 10% in the UK and even less, about 7% in the US, even consume nuts, nut consumers tend to have a healthier overall diet. So there is that confounding, but clinical trials show that if you add nuts to your diet, as included, you do not gain weight.

Now, that could be confounded by the fact that nut consumers, and only about 10% in the UK and even less, about 7% in the US, even consume nuts, nut consumers tend to have a healthier overall diet. So there is that confounding, but clinical trials show that if you add nuts to your diet, as included, you do not gain weight.

Now, that might be partly because of the mechanisms that we've talked about to do with the food matrix, that 20% to 30% of the calories are being excreted. So the back-of-pack labeling shows that per portion of nut is 170 calories. But actually, on average, you only absorb 130 calories. So lots of it's coming out.

Now, that might be partly because of the mechanisms that we've talked about to do with the food matrix, that 20% to 30% of the calories are being excreted. So the back-of-pack labeling shows that per portion of nut is 170 calories. But actually, on average, you only absorb 130 calories. So lots of it's coming out.

It might be because, you know, they're feeding the microbiome that's helping, you know, reduce adiposity. It's also nuts are satiating, so they make you feel more full. They also blunt your blood sugar response. They have so many other benefits that counterbalance any potential for weight gain.

It might be because, you know, they're feeding the microbiome that's helping, you know, reduce adiposity. It's also nuts are satiating, so they make you feel more full. They also blunt your blood sugar response. They have so many other benefits that counterbalance any potential for weight gain.