Sugar, cake

[Guest]

Startling juxtaposition of items on TV last night. I switched from the end of Channel 4 News and a hard hitting interview with Professor Robert Lustig to see the prog on University Challenge on BBC2 , just in time to catch Mary Berry quite unselfconsciously lashing a ton of sugary icing onto a cake - a cake which already had 3 layers of sugary filling.

Do those BBC baking programmes (food porn, if you ask me) come with any sort of health warning, because if they don't, they should?

Lots of links to Prof Lustig's lectures on You Tube.

[Mary Chambers]

It was a lemon cake, so it's one of your five a day :)

I suppose if a cake like that is a very rare treat it doesn't do much harm. If one ate it very day (and I would quite like to), then it's dangerous.

[Flosshilde]

If one ate it very day (and I would quite like to), then it's dangerous.

I was thinking about the way 'porn' is used now (prompted, I think, by seeing another over-used & devalued word, 'proud', on a sign about the Commonwealth Games). It seems to be attached to anything that might be considered perfectionist, or unatainable (unless one is willing to expend a great deal of time or effort in achieving it). Its power to shock is reduced & devalued (rather like 'whore' used as a general term of abuse for women - & sometimes men).

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

It was a lemon cake, so it's one of your five a day :)

Five cakes a day???!!!

Blimey - I'll have to cut down.

[french frank]

It was a lemon cake, so it's one of your five a day :)

I think you would need to eat the whole cake : that way the portion might be big enough to count.

(It sounds horrible to me! )

[amateur51]

Five cakes a day???!!!

Blimey - I'll have to cut down.

[Richard Tarleton]

I scarcely registered what type of cake it was, just the quantities of sugar. By "porn" - possibly not a good choice of word - I suppose I meant something which you know is bad for you but which you watch guiltily.

Prof Lustig is giving evidence to MPs today, it seems. His lecture "Sugar - The Bitter Truth" (see above link) has had 5 million hits on You Tube.

[amateur51]

I scarcely registered what type of cake it was, just the quantities of sugar. By "porn" - possibly not a good choice of word - I suppose I meant something which you know is bad for you but which you watch guiltily.

Prof Lustig is giving evidence to MPs today, it seems. His lecture "Sugar - The Bitter Truth" (see above link) has had 5 million hits on You Tube.

Since I was diagnosed as being type II diabetic about 8 years ago I have given up all additional sugar, fruit juice, etc. That bit is relatively easy and it's extraordinary how easily my palate has adjusted (same goes for additional salt).

However, avoiding the stuff as hidden sugar, for example in processed foods, is a bit of a nightmare. I'll read Prof Lustig's work with particular interest - many thanks RT

[Anna]

Robert Lustig is saying what I've been telling people for years - avoid any foods labelled lo-fat or lo-cal because they remove the fat and replace it with sugar to make it taste as good as if it had fat in it!! For example, 150g of a 0% fat yoghurt only has 120kcals but a massive 5tsps of sugar (half your daily allowance) As the Prof says, eat real food - if it's not in a package it means it hasn't been altered.

As for cake - I like a big slice healthy carrot cake topped with around half an inch of buttercream icing

[mangerton]

As for cake - I like a big slice healthy carrot cake topped with around half an inch of buttercream icing

Well, again, like the lemon cake, a carrot cake counts as one of your five a day.

Similarly, I always count the lime wedge added to a refreshing g & t.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Well, again, like the lemon cake, a carrot cake counts as one of your five a day.

You're showing the French origins of your nom-de-web here.

[Nick Armstrong]

I was thinking about the way 'porn' is used now. It seems to be attached to anything that might be considered perfectionist, or unatainable.

Hmm not sure about that - I think it's attached to any activity where there is a rather feverish and excessive display of something which may be inimical to one's well being. A friend works for a company which may be merging and the other day, they had to attend a day of presentations about the benefits etc etc by enthusiastic advocates of the move: she described it as "six hours of merger porn"...

[Nick Armstrong]

You're showing the French origins of your nom-de-web here.

Well, franglais at least - eh, mangertonandahalf?

[Nick Armstrong]

As for cake - I like a big slice healthy carrot cake topped with around half an inch of buttercream icing

Whereas I go for a slab of red velvet cake with a half inch of whipped vanilla cream cheese icing through the middle and round the top and sides. YUM!!!!

[amateur51]

Whereas I go for a slab of red velvet cake with a half inch of whipped vanilla cream cheese icing through the middle and round the top and sides. YUM!!!!

The mere sight of that sugar-laden portion has made my fillings ache