Does the technology we use affect our food choices?
How much of an impact do you think technology can have on what we eat?
Technology has a huge impact in our lives and food cannot be immune to it. I believe that technology should improve the food industry in two ways: one from a knowledge transparency perspective and the second from a production perspective. The last one is a little more complicated but in a few simple words, I would like to see local production come back into place, especially in big cities, to help decrease the consumption of processed food and ultimately reintroduce raw food to our lifestyle.
How can we encourage people through technology to eat better?
I believe it mainly comes down to stimulating self-education. We developed an App to help users follow a balanced diet, away from any crash diets and calorie counting; it is a simple, fun and an educational tool to quantify your food intake and follow a healthy and sustainable diet.
Why do you think that we have such a big obesity and overweight problem?
I believe that one of the main reasons is that we no longer have the same relationship with either cooking or food that we once had; and I guess one can argue that food is no longer part of our culture. Can you believe that many kids today cannot distinguish a tomato from a potato because they have never seen one? If this is the case, it makes one wonder whether these children grow up on fried chicken and processed food...that's why!
How do you think it is best we work towards reducing these numbers of obesity?
I think we need a classic pincer maneuver: on the one hand we need to regulate food production and on the other we need to design tools that allow people to learn about food. I believe that self-awareness is key in order to put an end to food related issues.
Do you think there is enough clear information about nutrition out there?
Let me use an example: if we look at a pack of supermarket kids cereals we find the classic nutritional label with the analysis based on Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA). The problem is that the GDAs, in most cases, refer to an average person, sometime an adult and not a kid, and furthermore, we rarely know about the actual serving quantities we generally consume and thus makes the information almost un-usable by average consumers.
If people want to learn about healthy eating and nutrition, where do you think they should start?
By going to the vegetable and fruit section of a supermarket and make sure they have tried most of the products on display. Curiosity generates learning and kids are a fantastic example of this. For example, if you buy pack-choi and do not know how to cook it, most likely you will google it to then find pages and pages of recipes, definition, source and nutritional information for that ingredient. This is the best way to start to learn and to gain an interest and understanding in what you eat.
If you could recommend one food that we need to cut out or down on in our diet, what is it?
Heavily processed food! I do not follow a particular diet that avoids ingredients; I follow a healthy and balanced diet, which means balancing out all my nutrients intake. Therefore, I do not tend to restrict the variety of raw food but definitely the intake of pre-packaged and industrial food because I believe in cooking as a vital component of my lifestyle.
What food/s should we be eating more of?
Without a doubt fruit and veggies but also super-foods such as Goji berries, raw chocolate and spirulina, to mention a few. I cannot emphasise enough the importance of making sure to include food as nutritious as possible in our daily diets.
What nutrition tips do you have to share?
Do not make severe diet decision, unless told by a doctor, just monitor your food intake and balance your diet. You want long-term health not just a quick fix weight loss but also to understand what different food does to you. This would be my best advice.
Nutribu App is launching at the beginning of October and will be available from the App store. For more information and to register for the app, please visit: http://www.nutribu.com/
Tagged in Nutrition Diet Healthy eating Diet tips