Dr John Briffa's blog, A Good Look at Good Health — writing on food, cholesterol, weight, energy and the science behind everyday health, from the drbriffa.com archive. Filter by topic, browse by category, or search the library.
Herbal Medicine
Before the advent of modern medicine, traditional methods of healing using food and herbs were all the rage. Despite the fact that such folk medicine has become overrun by high-tech and drug-oriented health care, a few homespun remedies survive. One natural concoction that appears to have endured is honey and lemon ” a traditional elixir […]
Healthy Eating
The combined efforts of the pharmaceutical and food industries have done a good job of convincing us is that having too much cholesterol floating around our bloodstream is one factor that is sure to speed our demise: only 15 years ago practically no one had heard of cholesterol, and now many individuals seem as fluent […]
Healthy Eating
Many natural health practitioners recognise the concept of body toxicity; a build-up of potentially poisonous substances in the system that may spawn problems such as fatigue, headache, spots and bad breath. The dietary excesses common over Christmas and New Year tend to be particularly toxin-inducing, and many see this time as a good opportunity to […]
Healthy Eating
As New Year is almost upon us, some of us will be giving some thought to the resolutions traditionally made at this time. Many will spy their diet as a target for change, and a common tactic here is to strip out foodstuffs well known for their disease inducing or weight-inflating properties. Fat laden or […]
Healthy Eating
In a few short days from now, many of us will be sitting down to a festive meal of turkey with all the trimmings. One common accompaniment to the traditional Christmas dinner is the Brussels sprout. The presence of this vegetable on our plate is no assurance that we will eat it though: the Brussels […]
Healthy Eating
Most natural health practitioners are enthusiastic about the healing properties of water. Those in the know often stress the importance of keeping the body topped up with fluid, and generally advocate that eight or so glasses of water pass our lips each day. However, while there is often much talk of the need to supply […]
Healthy Eating
When I was a small boy, I had some pretty antisocial habits. One of these was to engage in wee-up-the-wall competitions with my mates. A recent discussion over the dinner table reveals that this practice was commonplace amongst little lads of my generation. Alas, though, it appears that now we have grown up, peeing games […]
Healthy Eating
Many of us will hope that our advancing years enrich our lives with the wealth of experience and perhaps degree of wisdom they bring. However, this romantic notion of ageing is somewhat tempered by a somewhat bleaker side; that of increased susceptibility to all manner of undesirable conditions and a greater chance of us shuffling […]
Healthy Eating
During a food shopping trip this week I became acutely aware that the festive season is upon us. In addition to the glut of Christmas puddings and cheese and port ensembles, my local supermarket has seen an influx of nut selections typical at this time of year. Tasty though they are, nuts tend not to […]
Herbal Medicine
The distinct downturn in the temperature that comes at this time of year inevitably signals an upsurge in the numbers of individuals going down with a cold. On any given day, nigh on a million people in the UK will be blighted by the common cold, and each of us can expect to endure some […]