Chocolate and wine daily
When the Dutch, the Belgians and the Australians come up with a meal plan together, I am quite ready for experiments. Mussels on kangaroo steak, baked with Gouda - why not?
But the multi-cultural menu we're talking about here is not in any cookbook. It was recommended in the highly respected scientific journal British Medical Journal, and the entire German daily press plunged into it. "Drink wine, eat fish and plenty of chocolate, fruit, garlic and almonds", was the good news and fatal reminder of my bingeing during pregnancy. However, according to international authors, this is the diet that can prevent three out of every four cardiovascular diseases.
Maybe an April Fool's joke? Wrong date. Science Satire? Neither. The ladies and gentlemen really meant that. And so did many readers and immediately took action: In Australia, the chocolate stocks rose promptly. What did the scientists just ride? Simple: you've seen all the studies that have been done on nutrition and prevention of heart attack. Then they picked out the foods that had been noticed as a particularly good protection for the heart, and voila, it is served: daily 150 milliliters of wine, 100 grams of dark chocolate, 400 grams of fruit or vegetables, 68 grams of almonds and 2.7 grams of garlic (how many toes are they?). And then four times a week for each 114 grams of fish. Already, the cardiovascular risk drops by 76 percent.
That means for women: live five years longer (and eat delicious chocolate!). Men even manage seven years more. Okay: The crooked numbers probably result from the oddities of Anglo-Saxon quantity and weight units. But a whole bar of chocolate? Every day? That's about 600 calories! In addition, 400 calories for the almonds! But then I can not eat much else! Unless I want to get fatter from week to week. And in this way vigorously increase my risk of heart attack.
Four times a week fish? If everyone does that, the seas are empty even faster. Apart from the pollutants that we may possibly incorporate, keyword mercury. And garlic: What if my friends and colleagues can no longer smell me? Finally, social isolation is also a risk factor for heart attack! Yes, are the researchers completely out of the question? Obviously not. After all, they actually went to the lowlands of a Rotterdam supermarket and even calculated the price for their special menu: just under 22 euros per week. Provided you do without the wine on the nobler drops.
My suspicion: The whole is nothing but a statistical gimmick, worse, pettiness. No one has ever taken exactly this food combination for years. Who knows what comes out of it. Maybe two jars of bubbly and one big bag of cashew nuts would be even healthier every day? Hello, you scientists! If one of you plans a study, I'll be there immediately!
