Diet & Veg.

[PH]

I'm no dietician but I expect if you examine the idea in detail it will have many shortcomings (just as 5 a day could be achieved by eating 5 portions of cabbage every day which would probably not achieve the aims). Some foods might be different species but are likely very similar from a dietary perspective e.g. some grains.
Ian

I agree, though when the arbitrary "Five a Day" was promoted, it was always intended to be five different.

[mattsccm]

Strewth. I am stuffed then . Given a choice I don't eat 20 portions of veg a week.

[simonineaston]

I recall a dietitian chum telling me the UK government was thinking of trying to emulate Germany's example by advising 9 portions, but realised quite correctly that the UK's pop wouldn't have it. Likewise they removed that splendid vegetable the spud, on account of the likelihood that we'd go "Brilliant! Chips 5x a day!!"

[mumbojumbo]

Primitive man was nomadic and ate what he found which was varied and in small amounts, which meant diversity was built in. Farming when introduced favoured a specific product and a homogenous diet ,and a vulnerable system of production. This flaw has been compounded by a prevailing indolence and hence widespread obesity to varying levels. On top of this the USA convert surplus maize into corn syrup which they add to many convenience foods .I think early man was actually sophisticated and contemporary man is the primitive one.

[ndmbike]

Try googling 'Tim Spector' for the 30 types of veg and it's effect on the microbiome.
Reasonably recent research.

[Jdsk]

Primitive man was nomadic and ate what he found which was varied and in small amounts, which meant diversity was built in. Farming when introduced favoured a specific product and a homogenous diet ,and a vulnerable system of production. This flaw has been compounded by a prevailing indolence and hence widespread obesity to varying levels. On top of this the USA convert surplus maize into corn syrup which they add to many convenience foods .I think early man was actually sophisticated and contemporary man is the primitive one.

We don't know much about human diet before settlement, but there wasn't a single pattern:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleistocene_human_diet

Agriculture and settlement did have harmful effects on health.

Micronutrient deficiency has repeatedly occurred (and often first been identified) when humans move to new environments.

But that analysis does not take into account the novel foodstuffs that have followed human travel and discovery and trade. Perhaps some plants of American origin that we now routinely consume have caused more benefit than harm.

Jonathan

[Psamathe]

I do wonder is the importance of variety and having more veg might in part be due to modern production practices.

Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today
...
It would be overkill to say that the carrot you eat today has very little nutrition in it—especially compared to some of the other less healthy foods you likely also eat—but it is true that fruits and vegetables grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today. The main culprit in this disturbing nutritional trend is soil depletion: Modern intensive agricultural methods have stripped increasing amounts of nutrients from the soil in which the food we eat grows. Sadly, each successive generation of fast-growing, pest-resistant carrot is truly less good for you than the one before.
...

Ian

[[XAP]Bob]

Is cheese a vegtable? I've never seen one in a zoo, so I'm assuming it is.

Which reminds me with the frequent comment you get when asking about vegetarian in many restaurants in Peru "Si vegetariano con pollo" (yes, it's vegetarian with chicken" - they seem to consider chicken to be vegetarian!)

Ian

It's just processed seed, in the same way that steak is just processed grass

[Oldjohnw]

A couple of weeks ago, with some mates getting coffee and a bacon sandwich at a local cafe, I noticed they had ‘Vegetarian BLTs’.

Still thinking about that.

[Psamathe]

Is cheese a vegtable? I've never seen one in a zoo, so I'm assuming it is.

Which reminds me with the frequent comment you get when asking about vegetarian in many restaurants in Peru "Si vegetariano con pollo" (yes, it's vegetarian with chicken" - they seem to consider chicken to be vegetarian!)

Ian

It's just processed seed, in the same way that steak is just processed grass :wink:

Or what comes out of the back end of my dog is just reprocessed ... ?

I guess a lot depends on somebody's reason for being vegetarian/vegan. For me it's mainly sustainability so the "processing" is a significant consideration.

Ian

[NUKe]

cabbage
tomato
potato
Peas
carrots
Wheat
Semolina
Courgette
bell pepper
pepper
olive
peanut
mint
basil
oregano
mushroom
apple
orange
Peach
strawberry
Raspberry
broad bean
Peas
rice
fennel
onion
spring Onion
cashew
rapeseed
sesame seeds
pineapple
sweetcorn
30 odd without much thought from this week , but some are not healthy just a quick thought about what I have eaten.

[pjclinch]

A couple of weeks ago, with some mates getting coffee and a bacon sandwich at a local cafe, I noticed they had ‘Vegetarian BLTs’.

Still thinking about that.

Google "vegan bacon".
There's a growing trade in meat-free "I can't believe it's not <insert meat product category here>" stuff, and those would probably be using something similar.

[PH]

30 odd without much thought from this week , but some are not healthy just a quick thought about what I have eaten.

No legumes* They make up about 20% of my plant intake.
And I think semolina is wheat. Still an impressive list, I don't eat such a variety over the course of a week, I'm shopping for one and it's easier to buy in quantities that mean more repetition.

* Except peanuts

[Jdsk]

30 odd without much thought from this week , but some are not healthy just a quick thought about what I have eaten.

No legumes

* Except peanuts

+ Peas (twice), broad bean.

And I think semolina is wheat.

It is.

Jonathan

[Oldjohnw]

A couple of weeks ago, with some mates getting coffee and a bacon sandwich at a local cafe, I noticed they had ‘Vegetarian BLTs’.

Still thinking about that.

Google "vegan bacon".
There's a growing trade in meat-free "I can't believe it's not <insert meat product category here>" stuff, and those would probably be using something similar.

It isn’t, of course, bacon. Bacon is salt cured pork. So-called vegan bacon is something else but it isn’t bacon. It might be healthy and delicious, but it isn’t bacon.