Health news: salt and diabetes, wholegrains, cocoa

1. Fruit and veg are less nutritious 

Plants rely on both light and carbon dioxide to grow, but in recent history, they’ve been getting more CO2 than they're used to. This causing crops to become less nutritious; higher levels of CO² have been found to cause higher concentrations of carbohydrates and sugars in plants, and therefore lower concentrations of vitamins and minerals. Across 130 varieties of plants and from more than 15000 samples collected over the past 3 decades, the overall concentration of minerals like calcium, magnesium, potassium and zinc have dropped by an average of 8%!

2. Could wholegrains help beat colorectal cancer?

A major new report finds strong evidence of links between lifestyle and colorectal cancer risk. Too much alcohol, red meat, processed meat and obesity increase the risk, whereas physical activity and whole grains have been found to lower the risk. It's estimated that 47% of US colorectal cancers could be prevented each year with lifestyle changes. We have lots of healthy wholegrain recipes for you to try out on the VITL Life blog, including these tasty buckwheat waffles and this fruity breakfast crumble. 

3. Suffer from digestive troubles? Eat more cocoa

Many health benefits have been attributed to cocoa and its potent antioxidant functions. These include lowering cholesterol, slowing down cognitive decline, and keeping the heart healthy. Cocoa metabolism is partly dependent on the bacteria that live in our intestine and several studies show that the consumption of cocoa increases the levels of so-called friendly bacteria in the gut. After drinking hot cocoa every day for 4 weeks, researchers found that participants had higher levels of beneficial gut bacterium Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium.

4. How to tell if a diet is going to work

We've all been there - everyone raves about some amazing new diet and then you try it out and... nada. No luck. Next time, you might want to get your gut bacteria tested first. A recent study looked at why the fibre-rich 'New Nordic Diet' works for some but not others and found that its success depends on the particular combination of bacteria in the intestines of the dieter. Of course, we already know that a personalised approach is key when it comes to nutrition ;-)

5. Salt and diabetes - is there a connection?

It's not just sugar you need to look out for... according to new research, consuming too much salt may increase the risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes too. This could be through a direct effect on insulin resistance or an indirect effect on blood pressure and weight gain. 

Related articles from VITL Life

• Eat more cocoa with this dairy-free chocolate mousse recipe!

• Sugar - Is it really that bad?

• What other factors are making your healthy diet less nutritious than you thought?