Gingerbread may be having its moment this Christmas, but will it make its way onto your dinner table?

Like many people, I watched the latest documentary from Channel 4 with much interest. But Joe Wicks: Licensed to Kill did not turn out to be a fly-on-the-wall series about training the nation’s lockdown PE teacher to become a member of the Secret Service. Instead, he joined Dr Chris van Tulleken on a quest to expose the dangers of ultra-processed foods, where they pitted themselves against the super-heavyweights of snacking, protein bars.

There’s a sure sign, which I can’t help but notice, that marks the start of another academic year. It is suddenly much easier to get through the maze of supermarket aisles. Not that I am complaining about being rammed by child-sized mini-trollies. Or about one occasion, where I was almost ploughed down by a child bombing down the cereal aisle…

With the constant stream of world events vying for attention in the media, it takes a lot to make it into the headlines these days. Nonetheless, the latest results from the UK’s National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) did just that recently with some depressing news about our dietary habits. It won’t come as any surprise to learn that too many of us are still eating an unhealthy diet and are contributing to the rise in obesity in adults and children.

After taking part in the recent BMO Vancouver Marathon, I am now firmly in recovery mode. But like many people who have just completed an endurance event this spring, once you cross the finish line it feels like you are entering into unchartered territory. It doesn’t seem to matter if you have just run your first race or you are a seasoned veteran.

I couldn’t help but notice the recent splash on social media about Marks & Spencer’s new line. However, it wasn’t referring to this season’s update of their classic ware but rather the launch of their ONLY…INGREDIENTS range of breakfast cereals. The excitement around the name, itself, was very intriguing. I mean, didn’t their other cereals also contain at least some ingredients?

I am sure that I am not alone in finding that whenever I return from an unforgettable holiday, I like to try and hold onto it just a little bit longer. Sometimes this means I’ll be wearing the same touristy tee and drinking from a new ‘I heart (insert country here)’ mug for days on end. But more often I like to try to recreate some of the dishes and flavours that I enjoyed eating while away.

After what seemed like a very long and drawn out 2024, many have begun the new year with a renewed commitment to do things differently. Whether you’ve joined a gym, embarked on a new fitness regime or signed up for an event, so far you are probably still feeling pretty motivated. After all, it is early days and even if there’s a hint on the horizon that things may get harder, there’s still a lot you can do to stay the course.

In the run up to Christmas it’s all too easy to overindulge, especially when festive goodies are handed out at almost every opportunity. But I don’t just mean the times when you travel to see family and friends. You know that those visits oblige you to sample someone’s homemade mince pies or Christmas cake. However, recently I have been surprised to be plied with stollen bites, Bailey’s and holiday chocolates simply by buying presents, choosing a Christmas tree and attending my gym.

As I tried to negotiate my way around a supermarket already towering with Quality Street tins I was interested to see the latest headlines about Britain’s ‘addiction’ to ultra-processed food. The fast-food habit was now costing the country a whopping £286 billion every year. This startlingly high figure came from a recent report from the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission (FFCC) which found that the cost of chronic disease was now almost matching the total healthcare spend in the UK.