Questions and Answers: Health (Part 2)
Q: Does yogurt help you lose weight?
A: All foods are fattening if you eat enough of them. Yogurt is nutritionally similar to the milk from which it is made. There are low-fat yogurts which are slightly lower in calories and, of course, in fats.
Q: Is margarine less fattening than butter?
A: No. They both contain 85 percent fat and an equal number of calories.
Q: Is fish good for the brain?
A: Unfortunately, no single food is good for the brain. There is no food or dietary supplement that will help either to develop the brain or improve the memory.
Q: Does coffee keep you awake?
A: Some people cannot sleep after consuming caffeine, and some suffer more after drinking coffee than tea which also contains caffeine. Other people, however have a blissful sleep after a nightcap of steaming hot coffee.
Q: Do nightcaps help you to sleep?
A: Any hot drink before going to bed helps some people, but not everyone. Some of the night drinks have been known to reduce restlessness and so help people to sleep but the evidence has not been properly confirmed.
Q: Is coffee or tea bad for children?
A: Generally speaking, drugs and stimulants of any kind, including those present in coffee and tea, should not be given to children.
Q: Does coffee help sober you up after drinking alcohol?
A: No.
Q: Must we eat meat for strength?
A: No. Many people live very well on purely vegetable diets. Ask the vegetarians and they'll tell you their longevity secrets.
Q: Is soya meat substitute as good as meat?
A: Nutritionally, it is about the same because soya manufacturers usually add the main nutrients that are present in meat like vitamins B1, B12 and iron. Meat does contain other nutrients, but since most vegetarians are perfectly healthy, it would seem that meat is not essential to their diet.