Poor diet is biggest health risk and more deadly than smoking 

Poor diet is the world's deadliest health risk, accounting for a fifth of all deaths, a study has shown.

Superfood or stroke risk - what's the truth about eggs? 

Along with avocado and green juice, eggs have been hailed as a superfood in recent years. However, a new study of significant scale has now tarnished their halo somewhat.

In defence of the carb 

Potatoes, bread and the carbohydrate food group of which they are part have been vilified time and time again. But do they really deserve their bad reputation?

Plant-based milk: trend or health choice? 

Say you drink coffee and you want to buy a creamer, so you go into a supermarket. There are two products on offer - one costs €1.05 for a litre. The other costs €1.71. You might say that's nuts. And if you did, you'd be right. That's how much an online supermarket charges for one litre of ordinary milk and one litre of unsweetened almond milk.

High-fat diet 'increases risks of food poisoning and infectious disease' 

A high-fat "western" diet weakens the ability of the immune system to fight infectious disease particularly in the gut, leaving people more at risk of food poisoning, according to researchers at University College Cork (UCC).

Extreme eating: Diet is unrealistic for most Irish people, who would struggle to stick to it 

The EAT-'Lancet' Commission has addressed the necessity to feed a growing population a healthy diet while also minimising damage to the planet and cutting 11 million premature deaths a year.

Barbara McCarthy: 'Save me from egomaniacal health fiends' 

There's a scene in the film version of Umberto Eco's classic historical murder mystery 'The Name of the Rose', which stars Sean Connery and F Murray Abraham, in which a monk self-flagellates - an apparently regular ritual.

The 5 pillars of a healthy diet and the 5 worst fads 

Some 80pc of resolutions fail by February and just 8pc of people are thought to achieve their New Year's resolutions, studies have found. A common goal is losing weight. So why do so many people find this resolution so challenging?

You can have a healthy relationship with food 

Food is an issue that comes up a lot in my practice. For many, the relationship they have with food is one that is filled with shame, fear, angst and self-hatred. If we take another step back from this and ask the pivotal, underpinning question in relation to the psychology of eating, I ask 'what relationship do you have with yourself and how do you see yourself? When you look in the...

Dear Dr Nina: My two-year-old son vomits after every meal 

Question: I am at the end of my tether trying to get the proper care for my two-year-old son. He hasn't been right since he was born - he vomits after almost every bottle and meal, and has done so since birth. Sometimes it gets particularly acute and I bring him to A&E...

Dear Dr Nina: My two-year-old son vomits after every meal 

Question: I am at the end of my tether trying to get the proper care for my two-year-old son. He hasn't been right since he was born - he vomits after almost every bottle and meal, and has done so since birth. Sometimes it gets particularly acute and I bring him to A&E...

How the festive trimmings 'can be good for your health' 

Don't feel too guilty as you tuck into your Christmas dinner - the traditional turkey and trimmings can be relatively healthy and actually contains some superfoods.

Restaurant meals 'are busting calorie limit' 

The calorie content of popular meals in restaurant chains is excessive and only a minority are meeting public health recommendations, a new report warns.

By the book: Libraries embrace Healthy Ireland 

Libraries across the country have become a little healthier.

The vitamins debate: snake oil or health booster? 

To the devoted disciples of the church of supplements, it was a pronouncement near tantamount to blasphemy. It was claimed that the expensive practice of swallowing vitamins and minerals to better one's health was little more than a tax on the gullible.

Low-carb diet 'best for losing weight' 

Low-carb diets allow people to lose more than one-and-a-half stones over three years because they boost metabolism, a study suggests.

Nuts are a 'shew-in for well-being 

Nuts are good sources of fat, fibre and protein, so why aren't we eating more of them?

Buzz about Irish heather honey: the 'superfood' to rival liquid gold manuka 

Move over manuka - Irish heather honey has now been described as the new "superfood" and is overflowing with health-boosting compounds.

Celebrity low-carb diets 'take years off your life' 

Eating a diet low in carbohydrates could mean you die younger, a 25-year study has suggested.

The trouble with the modern dinner 

We've all done it: arrived home late from work or spent a couple of hours battling to get young children into bed (or both), before finally settling down to a 9.30pm dinner. Or treated ourselves to an 11pm snack, just because.

Sleep tight: How food and drink affect your rest 

What we eat has a knock-on effect on the way we sleep, but this does not necessarily mean we have to ban stimulants such as coffee and alcohol from our diets.

Diets rich in seafood increase chance of pregnancy 

There may be something to that myth about oysters and sex drive after all. Couples who eat a lot of seafood have sex more often and are quicker to achieve a pregnancy, new research has shown.

Put pasta back on the menu to lose weight 

Pasta is no longer off the menu after a new review of studies suggested the carbohydrate can form part of a healthy diet, and even help people lose weight.

The diet you can count on? - ‘It would be quite easy to develop a bit of a calorie complex’ 

Ask any dietician about the concept of calorie counting and you'll likely be met with an exasperated look.

The rise of alternative water 

The idea has been batted around for a while now, but the so-called 'sugar tax' on fizzy drinks will officially come into effect on April 6. The date was announced last week and will see a tax of 30c per litre added on to sweetened drinks with over 8g of sugar per 100ml in a bid to fight rising obesity rates.

Five other alternative waters 

Coconut water: Coconut water is heralded as a refreshing, thirst-quenching drink. It's the clear liquid obtained from immature, green coconuts. Nutritionally, it's unlike coconut milk, cream and oil, which are made from the flesh.

How that scalding hot cup of tea could lead to deadly cancer 

Hot tea and heavy alcohol consumption can increase the risk of a deadly cancer fivefold, research has shown.

Dining with danger... The worrying rise in food allergies 

Perhaps you're a parent who has had a letter home from your child's school instructing you not to allow nuts into your son or daughter's lunchbox, or maybe you've learned not to serve your mother-in-law shellfish unless you want to make a quick dash to A&E.

Nutrition guide: Week 3 

It's fair to say that most food groups have taken a bashing during short-lived faddy food trends and carbohydrates are no exception.

Quinoa's out, pea milk's in ­ meet the new superfoods 

For fashionable foodies, 2017 was the year of coconut oil, smashed avocado and chia seeds - but what will the on-trend kitchen whizzes be eating this year?

Nutrition guide: Week 1 

You can't out train a bad diet. Your body reflects what you do. If you continuously eat poor quality food, your body will reflect this and not the few hours you've spent working out each week.

Children consume 'three times more sugar' than recommended 

Half the sugar consumed by children comes from unhealthy snacks and sugary drinks, according to a health watchdog.

14 ways to manage indigestion 

Overdoing it on mulled wine and minced pies can lead to major stomach gripes at this time of year as the unholy trinity of bloating, acid reflux and abdominal discomfort make their presence known. Before reaching for the Rennies again, consider the following simple tips on how to manage indigestion and keep your gut merry this Christmas.

Rewriting the menu for diabetics 

One of the first questions anyone newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes will ask is "what can I eat?", says the charity Diabetes Ireland.

Heart risks higher for fast eaters 

Diners who gobble down their food quickly are five times more likely to develop symptoms which raise their risk of a heart attack than those who savour each mouthful.

Coffee lowers the risk of heart failure and stroke 

A plant-based diet and drinking coffee may both help to reduce the risk of heart failure, say scientists.

Protein diet to help in obesity fight by making us less hungry 

High-protein diets have led scientists to a new hunger suppressant that could help fight obesity.

Strict 'five-a-day' rule sidelined in new bid to fight child obesity 

Strict healthy living rules like aiming for 'five a day' have been sidelined in a new campaign to tackle child obesity.

Scientists make bacon even better 

Bacon is about to get even better as scientists have created genetically modified pigs that have 24pc cent less fat than normal pigs.

Worth its salt? 

A new survey has revealed certain brands of pesto are saltier than seawater. Although a popular choice for parents feeding their children, certain brands of pesto contain more salt than a fast food hamburger. Not only were the current salt levels within certain pesto sauces high, they were shown to be on the increase. It's alarming that some brands are becoming less healthy at a time...

Are the alternatives just milking it? 

Milk used to mean cow's milk. Although low-fat milk and skimmed milk have been popular for some time now, there is now a flurry of milk alternatives on offer that are growing in popularity.