Juliane Courtney-Clarke Dietitian

07/02/2022

Can diet prevent cancer? 🤔It was world cancer day on Friday so here's a summary of the evidence for you..

Although no single food can cause or prevent cancer, there are dietary pattens and habits that can help to reduce your risk of certain cancers.

1️⃣ Include sources of fibre, 🍠 such as wholegrains 🌾 fruits 🍓veg 🥦 and legumes. Consuming 30g of fibre a day and having sunlight exposure has been shown to have a protective effect against colorectal cancers.

2️⃣Despite common myths about dairy and cancer, the evidence suggests that dairy is protective against colorectal cancer and may also have a protective effect against premenopausal breast cancer too. 🧀 This may be due to the high calcium content in dairy products.🥛

3️⃣Consuming a wide variety of plant foods (incl fruits and veggies, nuts, seeds, legumes) may also be protective thanks to the fibre content, antioxidants and phyto-nutrients. 🫑🍓 Non-starchy fruit and vegetables are associated with a decreased risk in certain cancers such as oesophagus, breast and lung cancer.

4️⃣Be alcohol aware 🍷
Excessive alcohol consumption is linked to increased risk of certain cancers. Being mindful of your intake, sticking to the suggested limit of 14 units of alcohol and having some alcohol free days each week can help.

5️⃣Processed meats 🌭can contain potentially carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds and heterocyclic amines formed from high cooking temperatures. These and other components of processed meats may promote tumours forming.

If you or a loved one is diagnosed with cancer, it is NOT your fault. Diet and lifestyle can influence risk, but cancer formation is due to a variety of processes. Your long-term dietary habits will have a greater impact on your cancer risk than individual meals, so aim to focus on a diet rich in fibre, fruits and vegetables rather than feeling guilty about having a "fun" meal or something to drink.

17/11/2021

Monash FODMAP Blog

10/07/2021

04/05/2021

Nutrigenomics companies that use genetic data to create diets are becoming more popular. But does matching diet to genes improve health?

06/04/2021

Sometimes that person who is seen as ‘the healthy one’ by others is actually struggling with a disordered relationship with food or exercise.

One of the difficult things about this is how being seen as ‘healthy’ is often praised or encouraged in our society. So well-meaning comments about how disciplined or motivated somebody is or praising weight loss etc. can be inadvertently fuelling disordered thoughts.

Disordered thoughts and behaviours occur on a spectrum, so being aware of the line where focusing on wellbeing crosses over to becoming an unhealthy or obsessive focus is important. As well as the points mentioned in the above image, it can also be helpful to reflect on whether a behaviour is coming from a place of self-care or rigid self-control, is there any flexibility or wiggle room or is it a black and white rule?

If you are worried that you or somebody you know may have a disordered relationship with food or exercise the first step is usually to speak with your GP, there are also great resources and information on the and websites. Depending on the situation psychological & nutrition support may also be helpful.

24/03/2021

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩...𝙋𝙤𝙡𝙮𝙘𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙤𝙫𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙮𝙣𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙚?⁠

PCOS is a condition found in around 1 in 5 women. ⁠
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DIAGNOSIS: needs at least two of the following symptoms: ⁠
👉🏼irregular or absent periods, multiple unfertilised egg follicles (aka cysts) and signs of excess male hormones.⁠
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PCOS can be associated with insulin resistance (as also seen in type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome). Insulin resistance means the body is less sensitive to insulin, which makes it harder to lower blood glucose (sugar 🍭) levels, so the body makes more insulin. It’s thought the excess insulin drives the ovaries to convert oestrogen into testosterone, which prevents ovulation.⁠
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PCOS is associated with an increased risk of T2DM, cardiovascular disease and difficulty conceiving. 🤰🏻⁠
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👉🏼Lower carb diets and weight loss are often recommended for PCOS, but this will not be appropriate for everyone. It can be harder to eat enough fibre 🥦 on a low carb diet without careful planning, an issue as fibre can smooth out increases in blood glucose levels after eating, reducing the impact of insulin resistance. Weight loss is not the magic cure to everything!⁠
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🤯 Having an overly restrictive diet can increase cortisol and stress levels, which can actually raise your insulin levels. If your diet is causing you stress, then it might not be as healthy as it seems.⁠
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👍🏼 A more sustainable approach to adopt long-term could include being mindful of carbohydrate intake, choosing 🥕 vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, nuts and seeds as the primary sources.⁠
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👉🏼A moderate amount of protein and “healthy” fats such as nuts, olive oil, avocado 🥑 and Greek yoghurt are also helpful to include.⁠
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🐟 Omega 3s especially can have a beneficial impact on PCOS, and are found in sources such as oily fish, walnuts and flaxseed. It is important to find an approach that works for ​you​ when considering different diet strategies.⁠
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Thanks to for this post.

10/01/2021

Did you know that keto diets are associated with a VERY high risk of kidney stones?
These are the reasons why we think this happens. Essentially, a keto diet is lacking in all the GOOD things that prevent kidney stones 🥕🍆🍉🍅🥝and has too much of the stuff that causes them 🍗🍖🥓.
In addition, a keto diet can be harmful for people who have because of too much protein. High protein diets cause kidney disease to progress FASTER.
Wanting to make healthy changes in a kidney friendly way? Focus on eating MORE fruits and vegetables, eating healthy proteins in small portions and adding some HEALTHY whole grain carb. I know that’s not exciting advice (a keto diet certain does have that “wow” factor!), but don’t fall for quick fixes or fads. Best case scenario, they don’t work long term. Worst case scenario, you damage your kidneys, other organs and/or your relationship with food.

28/04/2020

Although is a vital component of many of the tissues in our body (including our skin, bones, teeth, muscle & blood vessels), consuming collagen in our diet or from supplements doesn’t necessarily convert straight into collagen in our body.

This is because our body cleverly uses amino acids to create whichever proteins it needs at that time.

For a deeper dive into collagen supplements & the related evidence, check out this article I wrote which was published on The Food Medic educational hub today: https://thefoodmedic.co.uk/2020/04/are-collagen-supplements-worth-the-hype/

16/03/2020

Frequently Asked Questions about nutrition and food in relation to COVID-19 / coronavirus from the BDA. We will keep this page updated as the situation develops.

16/03/2020

There’s no evidence that products that claim to boost or support immune function actually do so. In fact, a wholesale boost to the immune system could lead to autoimmune or autoinflammatory conditions. To protect health, adopt good health habit...