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General
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Are carbs good for me?
Every type of food is a carbohydrate source. From pinto beans to peanuts, lentils, rice, pasta, and cake. Plant foods are in fact mainly carbs. So it’s impossible to have a complete and healthy diet without carbohydrate sources (1).
(1) Mark Bittman and David L. Katz, ‘The Last Conversation You’ll Ever Need to Have About Eating Right’, 2018. http://www.grubstreet.com/2018/03/ultimate-conversation-on-healthy-eating-and-nutrition.html
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Are juice diets dangerous?
Juice or liquid-only cleanses are often marketed as a quick fix for weight loss or riding your body of toxins. However, they’re not all brands make them out to be. Juice cleanses are low in protein, low in fiber, low in calories and high in sugar. This combination can often lead to a lack of ‘feeling cleansed during or afterward. This can be due to a likely increase in headaches, fatigue, difficulty thinking, moodiness, stomach pain and hunger pangs.
https://www.livescience.com/48887-juice-cleanse-dangers.html
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Are juices cleanses useful?
When it comes to improving your health, we truly believe moderation and balance are the best courses of action to take.
Juicing reduces the amount of fibre within the fruit or vegetable, leaving you with flavor and sugar but not much else. Typically, juice cleanses result in your protein intake being reduced. So, while it can be useful due to your inability to juice fast-food (and therefore halting the excessive intake of saturates etc.) these types of cleanses are ultimately unnecessary.
If you’re concerned about a build up of toxins which drives you to embark on the journey of a juice cleanse, you may wish to consider the role of our liver and kidneys. Detoxifying the body is actually their primary job – and they’re really good what they do. In addition, they’re not alone. The liver, kidneys, gut, and immune system all contribute. So, if you really want to protect against toxins, you ought to really ensure you take good care of the health of these organs and the bodily systems they control. (1)
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Are saturated fats good for me?
The most important thing to have in any diet is a balance. Saturated fat is bad not because it is itself unhealthy (even some highly nutritious foods contain saturated fat) but because we get too much of it (1).
(1) Mark Bittman and David Katz, ‘The Last Conversation You’ll Ever Need to Have About Eating Right’, 2018, http://www.grubstreet.com/2018/03/ultimate-conversation-on-healthy-eating-and-nutrition.html
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Are your products GMO free?
Yes. All Erbology products are free from GMOs.
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Do your products contain preservatives or additives?
All Erbology product are free from preservatives or additives.
So, in a word, no.
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I've got a partnership idea. How can I get in touch?
If you’d like to collaborate and share your ideas with us, please get in touch at hello [at] erbology.co.uk. We’d love to hear from you!
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What are amino acids?
Amino acids are the building blocks for all metabolic processes. You can think of amino acids as the necessary proteins needed in order to perform every single life process in your body (1).
(1) ‘What are amino acids?’, http://www.aminoacid-studies.com/amino-acids/what-are-amino-acids.html.
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What are the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids?
Omega-3 fatty acids can positively affect many factors associated with heart disease (1). They may lower high triglycerides (2) (the fats into which excess calories are converted), regulate cholesterol (3), lower high blood pressure (4), prevent plaque build-up (5), reduce metabolic syndrome symptom (6), inflammation (7), blood clots (8), PMS cramps (9), improve retina function (10) and sleep (11). Omega-3 may also help to fight depression, anxiety, ADHD, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, and Alzheimer’s. Omega-3 has been linked to preventing and managing autoimmune diseases. In addition to all of this, it has also been linked to lower cancer risks (12).
(1) Fish and Omega-3 Fatty Acids, American Heart Association, 2016, http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/HealthyLiving/HealthyEating/HealthyDietGoals/Fish-and-Omega-3-Fatty-Acids_UCM_303248_Article.jsp#.WuBvQtPwaRt.
(2) Oliveira JM, Rondó PH, 2011 ‘Omega-3 fatty acids and hypertriglyceridemia in HIV-infected subjects on antiretroviral therapy: systematic review and meta-analysis’ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22180524.
(3) Bernstein AM, et al, A meta-analysis shows that docosahexaenoic acid from algal oil reduces serum triglycerides and increases HDL-cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol in persons without coronary heart disease, 2012, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22113870.
(4) Ramel A, et al, ‘Moderate consumption of fatty fish reduces diastolic blood pressure in overweight and obese European young adults during energy restriction’, US National Library of Medicine, 2010. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19487105.
(5) Wang Q, et al, ‘Effect of omega-3 fatty acids supplementation on endothelial function: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials”, 2012, US National Library of Medicine, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22317966.
(6) Ebrahimi M, et al, ‘Omega-3 fatty acid supplements improve the cardiovascular risk profile of subjects with metabolic syndrome, including markers of inflammation and auto-immunity’, 2009, National Institutes of Health. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19593941.
(7) Rizza S, et al, ‘Fish oil supplementation improves endothelial function in normoglycemic offspring of patients with type 2 diabetes’, 2009, US National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19394939.
(8) Marchioli R, et al, ‘Early protection against sudden death by n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids after myocardial infarction: time-course analysis of the results of the Gruppo Italiano per lo Studio della Sopravvivenza nell’Infarto Miocardico (GISSI)-Prevenzione’, 2002, US National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11997274.
(9) Harel Z, et al, ‘Supplementation with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the management of dysmenorrhea in adolescents’, 1996, US National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8623866.
(10) Anderson GJ, et al, ‘Docosahexaenoic acid is the preferred dietary n-3 fatty acid for the development of the brain and retina’, 1990, US National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2136947.
(11) Montgomery P, et al, ‘Fatty acids and sleep in UK children: subjective and pilot objective sleep results from the DOLAB study–a randomized controlled trial’, 2014, US National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24605819
(12) Dr Axe – Food Is Medicine, Omega-3 Benefits, Including for Heart and Mental Health, https://draxe.com/omega-3-benefits-plus-top-10-omega-3-foods-list/
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What are the benefits of sprouting?
Sprouting is essentially the process of germinating seeds and can be applied to grains, nuts, or beans. The process of sprouting (otherwise known as ‘activating’) makes the seed easier to digest, allowing your body to access the full nutritional profile within.
Sprouting is the process of soaking seeds or nuts for between 8 and 10 hours before leaving them to dry off. When rain falls on a seed it sends a signal indicating it’s time to start growing. In sprouting seeds and nuts we mimic the rain. The process removes phytic acid, reduces tannins, naturalises enzyme inhibitors, and prompts the production of beneficial enzymes (1).
(1) Dr. Axe, ‘Sprout Guide: How to Sprout Grains, Nuts & Beans’. https://draxe.com/sprout/
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What are the different oil extraction methods?
For some oils, the process of extraction is fairly straightforward. Take Chia Seed Oil for example, a simple mechanical press is sufficient to extract the oil from the seed without any additional processing. This process is known as cold pressing.
However, most oils on the market are extracted using a combination of pressing, cooking, solvent extraction and centrifuge pressing.
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What is a Ketonic diet?
- Commonly referred to as a ketogenic or low carb high fat (LCHF) diet, a keto diet is one in which you consumes a very small number of carbs so that the body can produce ketones in the liver which are used as energy.
- Unlike a high-carb diet where the body produces glucose and insulin for energy, a low carb diet induces the body into a state known as ketosis.
- The point of the diet is to limit carbs (not calories) in order to force our body into the metabolic state of ketosis.
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- Ketosis is a natural process the body initiates to help us survive when food intake is low. During this process, our liver breaks down fats and produces ketones to be used as energy.
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Source: https://www.ruled.me/guide-keto-diet/
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What is squalene?
Between 10 and 12 percent of the natural oil of your skin is made of squalene. It is a colourless, oily liquid found naturally in many animals and plants and is produced by your body to lubricate and protect your skin. Squalene is used in skin-care products as an emollient and natural antioxidant. Olive oil is a rich source of squalene (1).
According to the Oxford Dictionary of Food and Nutrition, Squalene inhibits the rate-limiting enzyme of cholesterol synthesis, and so has a cholesterol-lowering action (2).
(1) & (2) A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition (4 ed.), 2014.
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What is the difference between cold-pressed oils and infused oils?
Cold pressing is a method of extracting oil from its source. It produces the highest quality oil by avoiding the use of heat. When heating is involved in the extraction process the oil loses not only aroma and flavour but much of its nutritional content also. Cold pressing creates the least processed type of oil while retaining health benefits, distinctive taste, and smell.
Infused oils can be oils extracted using a number of different methods – cold press included. While cold pressing is a way of getting the oil from its ingredient, creating an infusion oil means bringing one or more additional elements into the mix. This creates a relationship between the characteristic of the oil and the extra ingredients being infused.
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Which plants are a good source of protein?
Here are some of the good sources of plant-based protein: amaranth, lentils, hemp and chia seeds, quinoa, spirulina, nuts, beans, organic tempeh, organic tofu, and edamame, wild rice, and chickpeas (1).
(1) Stephanie Eckelkamp, ‘The 20 Highest Protein Veggies (And Other Plant-Based Foods) You Can Eat’, 2018. https://www.prevention.com/eatclean/high-protein-vegetables-and-plant-based-food
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Why are Erbology powders not water soluble?
Our powders do not dissolve in water because adding the two together simply rehydrates the ingredient. Take for example our Sea Buckthorn Powder. The only ingredient is dried and gently crushed sea buckthorn berries. You wouldn’t expect a dried berry to dissolve when placed in a glass of water, and the same holds true of all our powders.
Comparing water-soluble, heat extracted inulin powders to our Raw Organic Sunchoke Powder, you might wonder why we don’t use heat extraction to make our products dissolve in water. In this case, we choose to mechanically crush the root of the plant instead of extracting with heat and solvents, to preserve Jerusalem artichoke’s nutrients.
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Why should I eat organic food?
The idea behind organic farming is to follow and respect all natural life cycles. It aims to deliver minimal impacts on the environment which means chemical pesticides, synthetic fertilisers, antibiotics and other substances are severely restricted (1). Along with this, organic farming places a strong emphasis on the protection of wildlife and the environment.
Natural methods of pest control such as well-designed crop rotations and developing healthy soil and crops are relied upon rather than chemical pesticides. By removing synthetic chemicals from the production and processing chains, organic farms encourage biodiversity and prevent pesticides from passing between food and our bodies.
Organic soils are far higher in carbon than non-organics and as a result, if organic farming was standard practice in the UK, it would offset a minimum of 23% of agriculture’s current greenhouse emissions (2).
A 2014 meta-analysis in the British Journal of Nutrition found that due to differences in fertilisation techniques crops grown organically were 48% less likely to test positive for cadmium, a toxic heavy metal that accumulates in the liver and kidneys (3).
To find out more about organic standards in the EU please visit The Soil Association website.
https://www.soilassociation.org/
(1) Producing Organic, European Commission Agriculture and Rural Development. https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/organic/organic-farming/what-is-organic-farming/producing-organic_en
(2) Organic Soil Association ‘What is organic farming?’. https://www.soilassociation.org/organic-living/organic-farming/
(3) Marcin Barański, et al, ‘Higher antioxidant and lower cadmium concentrations and lower incidence of pesticide residues in organically grown crops: a systematic literature review and meta-analyses’. 2014. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4141693/
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Without ethical consideration, which diet is best?
Scientific consensus on which diet is best for humans has not yet been reached. And because people lead varying lifestyles and are biologically different from one another, there isn’t one single diet that works best for everybody.
What we do know is that humans emerged from the prehistoric past eating a diet of unprocessed foods. This means a lot of fruits, nuts, vegetables, whole grains, beans, lentils, and seeds, with meat, eggs, and fish whenever possible (1).
Your body needs a certain amount of energy each day in order to function and perform daily activities. This energy comes in the form of calories. But when we consume more calories than we use, the leftovers are converted into fat and stored around the body as energy reserves. As a rule of thumb – avoid empty calories wherever possible and replace them with nutritionally powerful choices instead. Empty calories come from foods high in calories but low in nutrients (vitamins, minerals, etc.). In contrast, nutrient-rich foods have far more nutrients in relation to their calories. So next time you feel hungry, instead of reaching for a packet of crisps or buying a fast food meal, turn instead towards nutrient-rich foods such as vegetables, bran cereal with fruit, peanut butter, or fish. If those options don’t excite you, we have a wide range of nutrient-rich snacks for you to choose from.
Really, the most important thing to keep in mind is that health isn’t only about food – it’s also about the way you think and move. Your food choices need to support this, leaving you feeling energised and able to do what you love.
(1) Joseph B. Lambert, et al, ‘Ancient human diet from inorganic analysis of bone’, University of Evanston, 1984. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ar00105a001?journalCode=achre4
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