We use the symbol to denote dishes that have a low Glycemic load. This is a concept that five years ago was less accepted than it is now. The GL refers to the extent to which a food raises ones blood sugar levels as it is digested, and therefore the extent to which it has the opportunity to promote the build up of fat.

Initially, the concept became known as the Glycemic Index (GI) which measured food on a sugariness scale relative to glucose (which was given a score of 100) - all foods with a score above 50 were seen as bad news. More recently this has been modified to the idea of the Glycemic Load, which recognises the effect of the whole food not just how sugary the carbohydrate element of the food is. We give any dish with a GL of under 10 a .

These dishes have less than 1.5% saturated fat. Just as there are good carbs and bad carbs, so there are good and bad fats. Good fats such as olive oil, fishy fats, and the fats found in vegetables such as avocado, in seeds and nuts (and even goose fat) are now actively promoted as essential to health and even weight-loss. Bad fats, such as most animal fats and other hard fats are still seen as potentially harmful.

For a number of reasons, wheat has become a problem for many people, potentially up to one in two. Modern wheat is very different from traditional ‘old’ grains such as buckwheat, millet, spelt or kamut. It has been in effect naturally genetically modified to be easier to harvest and higher yielding and now contains 50% gluten vs. 2% for these traditional grains. Among other things, wheat can leave those intolerant to it feeling sluggish to the point of creating flu-like symptoms.

All mammals, including man, need milk in infancy. But as adults many of us lose the enzymes to digest milk and other dairy products. This can lead to poor digestion and the build-up of toxins. Since the widespread use of milk by adult humans, some of us have developed the ability to retain the enzymes to break down milk, but at least half of us still have a intolerance to dairy. Thus the DF icon.

At the extreme, gluten intolerance manifests itself in coeliac disease. But research is strongly suggesting that all of us would be healthier if we steered clear of gluten. Unfortunately it is becoming more rather than less common in our food.

So what general advice can one give? As Carole explains, the future is probably in individualised advice based on the particular make-up of the individual. But if one were to give general advice it would be to eat moderate portions of naturally produced food, mostly vegetables, with fair helpings of foods that we used to scavenge for – seeds, berries and nuts. And have side helpings of meat.

As Michael Pollen says in his excellent In Defence of Food; “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants”.

Energy guide
We have introduced an ‘Energy guide’ to help you quickly identify what kind of occasion this would be in calorie terms.

= Snack (250-350)

= Light meal (350-500)

= Main meal (500-800)

Over 800 we class as an indulgence. We need to treat ourselves every so often.