Diet

Want to stop snacking? Try eating off a red plate. According to a research team from the Institute of Psychology at Basel University, people drink less from red cups and eat less when snacks are served to them on red plates. In their first experiment, the team asked study participants to drink sweet drinks from […]

Babies who are fed whenever they are hungry have higher IQs than those who are fed on a schedule, a new study has found. The research — published in the European Journal of Public Health — suggests a significant difference in the mental abilities of “demand-fed” and “schedule-fed” babies. Related: Should military mums be allowed […]

Oprah Winfrey is one of the world's most famous yo-yo dieters and it appears she's at it again, losing 11kg in just six weeks.

The quickest way to lose weight is to cut out starchy carbs, right? Maybe not, says dietitian Susie Burrell. Carbohydrate-based foods, such as pasta, bread and even starchy vegetables, have been deemed taboo on many a weight-loss diet. The theory is that if you cut out carbs (the primary energy source used by the body), […]

Scientists are discovering just how hard our bodies fight to keep fat, shedding new light on why it is so hard to lose weight, writes Jordan Baker. Kath Read has been fat since she was a kid and, for the past 30 years, she has been picked on for it every day. She has been […]

Twenty years ago, Kit Kats were sold in two-piece packs weighing 20g, today a Kit Kat weighs 78g. Welcome to our supersize world. The result: we’re also supersizing ourselves. Fancy a biscuit? And how about a coffee to go with it? Twenty years ago, that would have meant a biscuit you could have fitted whole […]

About 25 percent of cancers could be prevented by improvements in diet and exercise, a new Australian study has found. Research conducted by the Medical Journal of Australia found that the incidence of cancer in Australia is likely to increase to 170,000 per year by 2025, a rise of nearly 60 percent since 2007. Of […]

With Easter just around the corner, it’s hard to avoid the subject of chocolate, but don’t feel guilty — modern science has come up with many excellent reasons why you can indulge. Up the ante: The cacao beans used to make chocolate actually contain the same disease-fighting phenolic antioxidants which are found in red wine, […]

Women spend their whole lives trying to lose weight but once they turn 85, research suggests they’d be better off fat. Obesity contributes to the deaths of millions of people every year, reducing a person’s lifespan by an average of six to seven years. Related: A DIY guide to living longer But a new study […]

Rebecca Gibney was stunned when she looked in the mirror late last year and realised she was ‘fat’. The usually-svelte star had put on 13.5kg to play troubled mother-of-five in upcoming film Mental. She enjoyed gaining the weight, but was horrified when filming was over and she was stuck with her new body. In pictures: […]