It’s an old saw that if you keep cheerful, you’ll enjoy better health. It doesn’t take much imagination to see why.

Believe in ill-health and it will come your way. Even witch doctors know that.

When a doctor tells a patient “You have three months to live”, a curse has been placed on the sick person. More often than not it will come true. If instead the doctor had said, “I have no doubt you’ll survive if you keep active and remain cheerful”, the outcome would be much better.

It’s a known fact that people who take out health insurance often get ill soon after. They are in reality making a bet on illness and disease rather than health.

An article in Syntagma explains where the British National Health Service (NHS) is going wrong. It’s run by government ministers who don’t understand human nature.

Read the article here.

We have a natural disinclination to drink water from the domestic hot supply. Yet many offices use the hot water on-tap to make coffee or tea.

Why the hesitancy, and is this just an old wive’s tale? Actually, there is a lot of substance in our reluctance.

Many older properties still have lead or copper pipes to deliver the water supply. Hot water dissolves copper and lead more quickly than cold.

Lead damages the brain and nervous system.

Copper contamination can cause liver and kidney deterioration.

So never drink water from the office or domestic hot water supply.

Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University in Germany, examined the effects of eight red and white wines from various countries on the enamel of teeth removed from men and women aged 40 to 65.

They found that prolonged contact with white wine erodes the protective layer of teeth making them more sensitive to cold, hot and sweet food and drinks.

Teeth soaked in white wines for 24 hours sustained more damage than those left overnight in red wines, says the journal Nutrition Research. “Within the limits of this study, it can be predicted that frequent consumption of white wines might lead to severe dental erosion,” claimed Dr Brita Willershausen.

Other culprits from recent research are orange juice, fizzy drinks, lemon, and grapefruit juice. The acids in these drinks soften the enamel so that immediate brushing can make matters worse.

However, calcium ingestion may provide some sort of defence. The tradition of having cheese with wine, for example, may be an intuitive reaction to the problem

Perhaps a glass of milk swirled round the mouth may also assist in counteracting the acid attack.

Broccoli is the latest vegetable being hailed as a “super food”, as scientists have announced it contains substantial amounts of the chemical sulforaphane, which helps the body keep the arteries clear so that a healthy flow of blood is maintained.

Although researchers have yet to prove whether simply eating larger amounts of broccoli is enough to make a difference, their findings add to the notion that fresh vegetables form an essential part of our daily diet if we are to maintain and improve our health, which is the principle behind the Government’s “Five a Day” campaign.

The research into the use of sulforaphane was funded by the British Heart Foundation, and it is hoped that it will lead to further breakthroughs in reducing or preventing heart disease.

Green vegetables, and in particular broccoli, have long been recognised for their health benefits. Being rich in antioxidants, they are beneficial for the skin and may even reduce the risk of certain cancers. The chlorophyll in green vegetables promotes healthy red blood cells, and nutritionists claim that eating greens can help maintain healthy blood pressure, prevent strokes and have a positive impact on the eyes and brain.

From an early age most people are trained to enjoy bland, processed food that is high in salt and sugar. When you look at the hundreds of ready meals on our supermarket shelves, it’s no wonder that people often complain that they can’t tolerate the natural flavours of certain fruit and vegetables. Often broccoli is criticised for being bitter tasting or too “strong” but we’re constantly bombarded with scientific support for the benefits of fruit and vegetables, so perhaps it’s time to re-train our palates and make some positive changes.

One approach is to change the proportion of meat and vegetables we have on our plates. Piling the plate with two thirds vegetables to one third meat is an easy principle to follow that will probably increase your intake of vegetables.

Taking care to present food attractively and to use a variety of cooking methods, including sometimes serving up raw vegetables, will maintain your family’s interest as well as avert boredom with what’s on the plate. Using vegetables to create a simple soup starter is also useful strategy, and you can hide less popular veggies easily in soups or sauces that are dominated by the delicious flavours of herbs and spices.

Planning and preparation are key in ditching convenience foods and eating a fresh, healthy diet. Freezing is not detrimental to the nutritional value of food, and therefore making and storing extra portions for use at busy times is a wise move that can help stop you reaching for the take-away menu or filling up on junk food.

See also Broccoli – the unloved superfood.

Rhian Gibbings