Masala chai is a milky, spiced Indian tea. It’s delicious on a cold, rainy autumn or winter’s day, and also as a warming drink for your flask when out in the hills.
A variety of spices can be used and the ratios are really down to personal preference, but the mainstays are usually cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom and fennel or star anise.
Ingredients:
Makes 4 cups
Almond/ rice/ soy milk – 2 cups
Water – 2 cups
10 cardamom pods
4 black peppercorns
1 star anise
1-2 cinnamon sticks
2 cloves
4 large slivers of fresh ginger
1 bay leaf
1 pinch of rose petals
2 teabags
1 teaspoon honey per serving – optional
Instructions:
Add the milk, water and spices to a large saucepan
Bring to a gentle simmer over a low heat
Add the teabags and allow to infuse for a few minutes
Strain the tea into mugs
Add a small amount (teaspoon or less) of honey to sweeten
If you use non-dairy milks such as almond or rice (which are naturally sweet) you don’t really need to add much, if any, sweetener
Are you confused by all the contradictory dietary advice out there?
Should you go low fat or low carb? Vegan or paleo? Ketogenic? Mediterranean? Pescatarian?
The truth is, it’s extremely difficult to prove that there’s one universal diet that’s superior to all others, certainly in terms of its effects on health and peak performance.
One thing is clear, we shouldn’t be eating the prevailing low quality Western diet, which is high in refined sugar, processed and red meat and saturated fat. This pattern of eating has resulted in 2 billion people being overweight or obese, and has fuelled the increasing prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer (1,2).
In reality, many people will derive significant health benefits if they stick to a few simple, evidence based food principles.
However, if we really want to answer the question of “what should we eat?” then we must also consider planetary health, as this is inextricably linked to our own health and survival.
And when we take the planet into consideration, the answer is very clear: we should eat a plant-based diet.
This is the conclusion of a number large-scale, mainstream scientific studies (3,4,5), including the recently published literature review by the EAT-Lancet Commission (1).
So why is a plant-based diet best for the planet?
To answer this we need to look at our current system of food production, which we now understand to be the single largest contributor to environmental degradation.
Food systems account for up to 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions(1,3,5). However, climate change is only part of the story. Food systems drive a range of serious environmental issues that now threaten human health and survival, including biodiversity loss, eutrophication and depletion of fresh water supplies.
Food production is the largest cause of global land-use change, with 40% of terrestrial land used for crops and grazing. This has resulted in massive biodiversity loss, to the extent that we are witnessing the Earth’s 6th Mass Extinction Event. Species are being lost 100-1000 times faster than the natural background rate. 80% of extinction threats to birds and mammals are due to agriculture (1).
The impact of humans and our agriculture is now so great that it has drastically altered the make-up of global biomass (the total weight of living matter in a given area).
Humans comprise just 0.01% of Earth’s total biomass, but our impact is disproportionately large; 96% of all mammals are either humans (36%) or our livestock (60%) – mainly cattle and pigs. Only 4% of mammals are wild. 70% of all birds on the planet are farmed poultry. Only 30% are wild (6).
Food production is responsible for 78% of eutrophication (1,5). This refers to the excessive application of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers, which are washed off into streams and rivers, causing algal blooms and hypoxic conditions in freshwater and marine ecosystems, which results in widespread coastal “dead zones,” devoid of aquatic life.
In areas where fish still exist, 60% of the world’s fish stocks are now fully fished, and 30% are overfished. Catches by global marine fisheries have been declining since 1996 (1).
The overall negative impacts of our food systems are very clear, but we still need to eat. So what we really want to know is: which food products are ecologically sustainable, and which are harmful.
To answer this, Joseph Poore and Thomas Nemecek performed the largest study to date of the impacts of agriculture on the environment, and their results were published in Science in 2018 (5).
They undertook a global analysis of data from 38,700 farms in 119 countries, looking at 40 food products, in terms of their effects on five key environmental indicators: greenhouse gas emissions, land use, acidification, eutrophication and freshwater withdrawals.
They found that even the most sustainable animal products exceed the average impacts of plant protein. As a result, if we were to switch to a plant based diet, it would reduce land use by 76%, greenhouse gas emissions by 49%, acidification by 50%, eutrophication by 49% and freshwater use by 19%.
In countries such as the UK, Australia and the USA, where meat consumption is 3 times the global average, the effects would be even greater.
The authors concluded that moving from a meat-based to plant-based diet has “transformative potential” and that avoiding meat and dairy is the single biggest way we can reduce our ecological impact.
But what exactly should we eat? What does a diet that is both healthy and ecologically sustainable look like?
This key question was finally addressed by EAT-Lancet Commission (a joint project by the Norway based NGO EAT and the Lancet Medical Journal), which undertook an extensive literature review and published its results earlier this year (1).
They came up with a universal healthy reference diet, or Planetary Diet, which is predominantly plant-based, provides 2500 kcal per day, and consists largely of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and unsaturated oils. It specifies a low to moderate amount of seafood and poultry, and no or low amounts of red meat, processed meat, added sugar, refined grains and starchy vegetables.
In practice, the Planetary Diet is similar to a Mediterranean or Okinawan Diet, which for many Europeans represents quite a shift in the way they eat. It would involve a 77% reduction in red meat consumption (by allowing only 1 beef burger per week), 15 times more intake of nuts and seeds, 2 servings of fish per week, 1-2 eggs per week, and 1 glass of milk per day (or 250g of full fat milk products).
So, having read this, are you now going to adopt the Planetary Diet, or perhaps go completely vegan? Maybe not…
Behavioural change is notoriously difficult. Even if there was widespread acceptance of the problems associated with our current level of consumption of animal products, awareness of an issue is no guarantee that people will adopt a more sensible path, as most health practitioners will attest.
This is certainly true for plant-based dietary change, probably because for many societies, eating animal products is the traditional, dominant eating pattern. A rejection of meat represents a rejection of social norms. It’s also important to appreciate that food confers much more than nutritional needs. It’s a source of pleasure, personal identity and economic status. In many developing countries eating meat is aspirational and symbolic of wealth. For some people, meat is associated with masculinity.
This is borne out by studies of public perceptions surrounding food impacts and dietary change, which suggest that there can be scepticism of the scientific evidence, resistance to the concept of reducing meat intake, and that non-food related behaviour change is deemed more acceptable (7).
However, eventually a threshold is usually reached, beyond which our resistance to change is overpowered by the realisation of the gravity of a situation, accompanied by a sense of urgency; such as when a patient receives a diagnosis of a life-threatening condition and finally feels compelled to make radical lifestyle changes. Perhaps as a society we are approaching that point with environmental degradation and non-communicable diseases.
Recently it feels as if the tide may be turning, with the global support for Greta Thunberg and the climate strikes, the Extinction Rebellion protests, and the increasing cultural acceptability of plant-based eating.
Make no mistake, we have very little time left to limit climate change to a survivable level and prevent further irreversible biodiversity loss. We urgently need to make transformative changes if we hope to do this, and there is no doubt that a global shift towards healthy, plant-based diets represents a very powerful tool.
If you still need some convincing, or are finding it difficult to make the leap to a more plant-based lifestyle, here are a few tips and suggestions:
First, watch the movie “Cowspiracy” (you can find it on Netflix).
Start experimenting with plant-based eating. There are now tonnes of resources out there (even confirmed omnivorous chefs such as Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver are jumping on the bandwagon). The key is to find a tribe that suits you.
Willett W, Rockström J, Loken B, Springmann M, Lang T, Vermeulen S, et al. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. The Lancet. 2019 2019/02/02/;393(10170):447-92.
Afshin A, Sur PJ, Fay KA, Cornaby L, Ferrara G, Salama JS, et al. Health effects of dietary risks in 195 countries, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. The Lancet. 2019;393(10184):1958-72.
Aleksandrowicz L, Green R, Joy EJM, Smith P, Haines A. The Impacts of Dietary Change on Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Land Use, Water Use, and Health: A Systematic Review. PLOS ONE. 2016;11(11):e0165797.
Clark M, Tilman D. Comparative analysis of environmental impacts of agricultural production systems, agricultural input efficiency, and food choice. Environmental Research Letters. 2017 2017/06/01;12(6):064016.
Poore J, Nemecek T. Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science. 2018;360(6392):987.
Bar-On YM, Phillips R, Milo R. The biomass distribution on Earth. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2018;115(25):6506.
Macdiarmid JI, Douglas F, Campbell J. Eating like there’s no tomorrow: Public awareness of the environmental impact of food and reluctance to eat less meat as part of a sustainable diet. Appetite. 2016 2016/01/01/;96:487-93.
I think I could eat a Buddha Bowl every night of the week. Endless variations on a simple theme: one third grains, one third veggies and one third protein. Then top it off with a delicious sauce.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Carbs/ Grains
Brown rice – 1 cup
Quinoa – 1 cup
Veggies and protein
Medium broccoli – half
Medium cauliflower – half
Medium carrots – 2
Red capsicum – 1
Chickpeas – 1 tin (approx 230g)
Cumin – 2 teaspoons
Coriander – 1 teaspoon
Smoked paprika – 1 teaspoon
Cayenne pepper – 1/2 teaspoon
Tamari/ soy sauce – 1-2 tablespoons
Garlic – 2 cloves
Lime -1 squeezed
Avocado – 1 chopped
Satay sauce
Almond/ peanut butter – 1/2 cup
Warm water – 1/2 cup
Japanese rice vinegar – 1/4 cup
Tamari (or soy) sauce – 2 teaspoons
Sesame oil – 2 teaspoons
Honey – 1 teaspoon
Lime juice – 2 teaspoons
Instructions:
Rinse the rice and quinoa and place in a saucepan
Cover with water and bring to the boil
Once boiling, reduce the heat to minimal, place a lid on the saucepan, allow to cook for approximately 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the grains to absorb for another 10 minutes or so.
Meanwhile, roughly chop up the brocolli, cauliflower, carrots and capsicum and place in a baking dish
Add the drained chickpeas, spices and tamari to the veggies and mix together well
Place in the oven (at 180°C) and cook for 20 minutes
Meanwhile, make the satay sauce…
Mix together the nut butter and warm water until it has a smooth consistency
Then add the tamari, sesame oil, rice vinegar, honey and lime juice and mix together
After 20 minutes in the oven remove the veggies, add the garlic and mix together
Bake for another 10-15 minutes
Remove the veggies and make your Buddha Bowl…
Place the rice and quinoa mix at the bottom of the bowl and cover with plenty of the baked veggies
Top with a few table spoons of the satay sauce and some chopped avocado
If you haven’t been wild camping before, knowing what to pack can be a bit daunting.
As a starting point, I’ve written down the kit I take for 1-3 night wild camping trips in spring, summer and autumn in the UK. I’ll save a discussion about winter camping for another time.
Everyone will give you slightly different advice, and it takes a few trips to establish your own personal system, likes and dislikes.
I would suggest trying to stick to a few key principles:
Go light to go fast:
Take enough gear to be safe and warm, but otherwise focus on going as light as possible – you’ll be thankful when you’re still looking for your elusive camp spot after 8 hours on the hill.
Approach with the right mindset:
Part of the adventure of wild camping is to rough it a bit; you’ll get a lot more out of the experience if you accept that you’re going to have a couple of nights of suboptimal sleep, no hot showers and too many dehydrated noodles and cereal bars.
If you approach the trip with this mindset, you’ll be less likely to pack unnecessary gear which will only weigh you down. I can assure you that when you get back your evening meal will taste fantastic, and you’ll sleep like a log!
Allow yourself a luxury item:
Admittedly, if you start to do a lot of wild camping, then the fully spartan, minimalist approach can wear a bit thin. Yes, it’s supposed to be an adventure, but it’s also supposed to be enjoyable, so there’s nothing wrong with taking a luxury item or two to keep morale up. For example, freshly ground coffee, a small cake to share in the evening, hipflask with whisky etc.
So, here’s the basic list:
Rucksack:
40 litres
this is plenty of space for a 2 night camping trip. If you take something bigger you’ll likely fill it with stuff you don’t need. Going for a smaller pack forces you to think about what’s really essential. If absolutely necessary, some items can be covered and strapped to the outside (eg. a rolled up sleeping mat)
in winter or on longer trips you’ll need more gear, so a 60-70 litre pack is more useful
Sleeping:
Lightweight 1 man tent
Ideally this should weigh less than 1.5kg. You can shave some weight by buying ultralightweight tent pegs. Aim for a model with a decent vestibule (porch area for storing your rucksack and cooking in if it’s raining), a robust groundsheet and enough height so you can sit up
Full length sleeping mat
Stuff sack – fill with your spare clothes, cover with a fleece and use as a pillow
2-3 season sleeping bag
Cooking:
Lightweight stove and pan – I use a Jetboil all in one system, so there’s no need for a pan
Enough fuel
Matches – if the stove lighter fails
Mug
Large bowl
Spoon/ spork
Pocket knife
Food – dehydrated meals for the number of nights you’re away, oats for breakfast, wraps/ bagels for lunches, plenty of trail mix and cereal bars for snacks (preferably home-made – see here, here and here)
Teas/ coffee/ hot chocolate/ soup – I allow for at least 4 hot drinks per day plus water
Water bottle – for collecting and storing water at camp
Water filtration system – if you’re going wild camping then the assumption is you’re going to have access to water supplies along the way. I always boil my water when at camp, and use a filter to make water safe when en route, unless I’m sure it’s clean
Clothing:
Waterproof jacket and trousers
Primaloft or down jacket for warmth at lunch stops and camp (synthetic insulation is more useful than down in the damp UK climate)
Base layer
Microfleece
Walking trousers
Spare base layer and pants/ thermals for camp
Walking socks plus 1 spare pair
Boots
2 plastic bags
Depending on the conditions and terrain, it’s possible your boots and socks will be wet when you get to camp. Take a spare pair of socks to change into and line your boots with plastic bags. You can then walk around camp in your boots without getting your fresh socks wet. Generally your boots will have mostly dried off by the next day. Wring out your wet socks and dry them in your sleeping bag overnight.
Gaiters – invaluable for helping to keep your feet dry
Beanie
Gloves (consider also taking mitts)
Buff
Midge net – essential if camping in the West of Scotland
Multiple dry bags of various sizes for storing spare clothing and your sleeping bag
Miscellaneous items:
Map and compass
Phone
Headtorch (plus spare batteries or back up headtorch)
Sunscreen, sunglasses and sun hat – if appropriate
Alcohol hand sanitiser gel/ toilet paper/ plastic trowel
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Bin bag – you need to pack out all your waste
Basic first aid kit – dressings, tick remover tool, analgesia etc
Nature deficiency is becoming an increasing problem, inextricably linked to those other facets of modern life: urbanization, prolonged inactivity and addiction to technology.
Since 2007, more than half the world’s population resides in urban areas. Many of us now spend the majority of our time indoors, sitting down, glued to our screens. As a society we are withdrawing from nature and losing our connection with food. The number of children playing outside regularly is diminishing.
Why does this matter?
Well firstly, it’s making us sick.
City living clearly offers many opportunities and advantages, and is not in itself the problem. However, urbanization is often associated with issues such as air pollution, lack of safe green spaces for recreation, and promotion of unhealthy food choices. These problems are linked to the increasing prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular and respiratory disorders, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity and depression.
Likewise, relatively new technologies such as personal computers and smart phones, the internet and social media, as well as offering huge benefits, are associated with adverse health outcomes such as reduced physical activity and obesity, mental health problems (gaming addiction, cyber bullying, depression and suicide) and sleep disruption.
Secondly, as we withdraw from nature, we lose the many health benefits that time outside bestows. Check out this post to learn about some of the ways in which interacting with natural places can improve not only your physical and mental health, but also your cognitive abilities.
But even if you don’t need convincing to spend more time outdoors, the reality is that there can be numerous barriers to getting outside on a regular basis: our work, the weather, family responsibilities, lack of access, maybe even fear.
So, here are some tips and suggestions to help us get a regular dose of nature:
1: Work nature into your daily routine
Time is a big issue for most of us, so let’s start simply.
What about sitting outside for 10 minutes at some point during the day. If you have a garden or balcony, can you have your morning cup of coffee outside before you start the day, or when you get home to help you unwind?
Alternatively, is there a park or other public green space near your work where you can go and have lunch, or take a short walk during the day?
Another obvious way to increase both your nature exposure and exercise is to switch from using your car or public transport, to active travel for your daily commute to work.
If that’s not possible, maybe you could try walking or cycling to work one day a week. If it’s too far, can you drive or get public transport part of the way, and walk or cycle the rest? Can you design a route that takes you through a park or other type of green space?
2: Take your exercise outside
Is it possible to take your workout outside occasionally?
Nature provides a great natural gym. You can go to your garden, local park or woodland and do some outdoor high intensity circuit training: pull-ups on tree branches, dead lifts using rocks, farmers carries using logs, jumps onto or between obstacles.
If you’re into running, instead of pounding the pavements or the treadmill, can you find a local trail to explore? If you like swimming, have you ever considered ocean swimming or wild swimming in rivers or lakes?
3: Involve your kids
It’s great to involve your kids in your outside workouts. If they’re young, you can modify the exercises to make it fun for them as well as challenging for you. Try bear crawling, practice your fireman’s lift and see how far you can carry them, do sprinting races, play tag, and devise obstacle courses in the park or garden.
If your kids are older then they can join you on more challenging and time consuming outdoor activities such as bike rides, runs, hill walks, or fishing trips.
4: Try nature based hobbies
If you can develop a passion for immersive outdoor activities such as gardening, bird watching, fishing or conservation volunteering, then nature deficiency is unlikely to be a problem for you ever again. Try experimenting with a few and see what grabs you.
5: Go on a microadventure
This is a great term coined by adventurer Alastair Humphreys. According to his definition, a microadventure is “an adventure that is close to home, cheap, simple, short, and yet very effective.”
To me, it means recreating some of the adventures we had as kids – exploring our local neighbourhood, finding or building shelters, climbing, playing unstructured games and camping.
For a start, why not try spending the night camping in your back garden occasionally? If you’ve got young kids, you can involve them too. They’ll think it’s a great adventure. Or if you need a break from them, and have child minding options, wait until they’re asleep before you set up camp. Spend the night in your tent and head back inside before they get up for breakfast!
Tents, sleeping bags and all the other requisite gear for camping are becoming much more affordable. You don’t need to buy a top of the range, 4 season expedition tent that can withstand Himalayan storms!
What if you don’t have a garden or if you want to explore further afield? Try wild camping…but remember that you can’t just set up camp anywhere. In England and Wales you may need permission from the landowner. Not so in Scotland where the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 applies, giving you the right to roam.
Wherever you go though, it’s important to act responsibly, be as inconspicuous as possible and leave no trace. Pack out all litter, avoid fires, and learn how to take a shit in the woods properly. Seriously – find a suitable spot at least 50m away from water, take a small trowel, and bury your waste in a hole at least 6 inches deep.
Truly explore your local area, on foot, by bike, on or in the water. Try foraging for seasonal wild foods such as wild garlic, elderflowers, mussels and blackberries.
(If you want to pick wild fungi then enlist the help of an expert, otherwise this can end up being an extreme sport – you might as well go base jumping. I’ve seen enthusiasts end up in the Intensive Care Unit on a dialysis machine after eating what they believed was a harmless edible mushroom.)
6: Change your mindset (and your clothes)
It’s become a cliché but “there’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.” (I used to think this quote was from Billy Connolly, however it may actually be attributable to Alfred Wainwright. Or Sir Ranulph Fiennes. Or it’s a Scandinavian saying. Whatever – it’s on the money).
Here in the UK, the weather can be perceived as a significant barrier to getting outside. But we‘re not the only country to have challenging weather conditions. We’ve got some amazing and very accessible natural areas on our doorstep: friendly rolling hills and more challenging mountains, rivers and national parks, miles of coastline and networks of bridleways and country lanes. Modern outdoor clothing is highly effective at keeping us warm and dry in all but the most miserable conditions. And remember how great it feels to come inside after having an outdoor adventure in the cold and wet.
All we need is a change of mindset. The health benefits of nature are on offer whatever the weather, so invest in some decent outdoor gear and rediscover that being outside is an important and normal part of everyday life.
We intuitively know (although we may have forgotten) that spending time outside in natural areas makes us feel good, reduces our stress levels, and is a great way of exercising and socialising.
This knowledge is now backed up by a growing body of research, which strongly suggests that interacting with nature has a wide range of health benefits; not just psychological, but also physical, cognitive and social.
Here are just a few of the reported benefits:
Reduced mortality from all causes 1-3
Reduced risk of suffering from certain illnesses 4
Stress reduction 5
Improved mood and self esteem 6, 7
Improved short term memory8
Increased creative problem solving ability9
Reduced inflammatory markers 10
Increased expression of anti-cancer proteins 11
Reduced symptoms in people with mental health problems 12
Reduced symptoms in children with ADHD 13
Reduced health inequality 14
Impressive, but why do we need scientific evidence to confirm what we’ve intuitively known for centuries: that spending time outside is good for us?
Well sadly, our sedentary, indoor lifestyles and our increasing disconnection with nature means that such studies are now assuming great importance, in order to help reshape public health policy, urban planning and architectural design. They also serve to remind each of us individually that being in nature is essential for our health and not an optional extra.
Yes, many of the studies referenced above have some limitations, and suggest a correlation rather than causation. Important questions remain to be answered, such as:
What exactly constitutes “nature exposure”?
What are the doses required to achieve the various health benefits?
Is there an optimal frequency and duration?
Nevertheless, there’s an overwhelming trend towards a positive association between interaction with nature and beneficial health outcomes.
And prescribing more nature to people is not the same as exposing them to a drug with potentially harmful side effects. It’s hard to think of many downsides to increasing our time spent in nature. It’s also free. I’ll await the results of future studies with interest, but in the meantime, I’m off outside.
But even for those of us who love the outdoors, the reality is that there can be numerous barriers to getting outside on a regular basis: our work, the weather, family responsibilities, lack of access, maybe even fear.
So how can we make sure that we get a regular dose of nature?
Check out this post for some tips and suggestions.
References
Crouse DL, Pinault L, Balram A, Hystad P, Peters PA, Chen H, et al. Urban greenness and mortality in Canada’s largest cities: a national cohort study. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2017;1(7):e289-e97.
Gascon M, Triguero-Mas M, Martínez D, Dadvand P, Rojas-Rueda D, Plasència A, et al. Residential green spaces and mortality: A systematic review. Environment International. 2016;86:60-7.
James P, Hart Jaime E, Banay Rachel F, Laden F. Exposure to Greenness and Mortality in a Nationwide Prospective Cohort Study of Women. Environmental Health Perspectives. 2016;124(9):1344-52.
Maas J, Verheij RA, de Vries S, Spreeuwenberg P, Schellevis FG, Groenewegen PP. Morbidity is related to a green living environment. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. 2009;63(12):967.
Park BJ, Tsunetsugu Y, Kasetani T, Kagawa T, Miyazaki Y. The physiological effects of Shinrin-yoku (taking in the forest atmosphere or forest bathing): evidence from field experiments in 24 forests across Japan. Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine. 2010;15(1):18-26.
Barton J, Pretty J. What is the Best Dose of Nature and Green Exercise for Improving Mental Health? A Multi-Study Analysis. Environmental Science & Technology. 2010;44(10):3947-55.
Pretty J, Peacock J, Sellens M, Griffin M. The mental and physical health outcomes of green exercise. International Journal of Environmental Health Research. 2005;15(5):319-37.
Berman MG, Jonides J, Kaplan S. The Cognitive Benefits of Interacting With Nature. Psychological Science. 2008;19(12):1207-12.
Atchley RA, Strayer DL, Atchley P. Creativity in the Wild: Improving Creative Reasoning through Immersion in Natural Settings. PLOS ONE. 2012;7(12):e51474.
Mao G-X, Cao Y-B, Lan X-G, He Z-H, Chen Z-M, Wang Y-Z, et al. Therapeutic effect of forest bathing on human hypertension in the elderly. Journal of Cardiology. 2012;60(6):495-502.
Li Q, Morimoto K, Kobayashi M, Inagaki H, Katsumata M, Hirata Y, et al. Visiting a Forest, but Not a City, Increases Human Natural Killer Activity and Expression of Anti-Cancer Proteins. International Journal of Immunopathology and Pharmacology. 2008;21(1):117-27.
Berman MG, Kross E, Krpan KM, Askren MK, Burson A, Deldin PJ, et al. Interacting with Nature Improves Cognition and Affect for Individuals with Depression. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2012;140(3):300-5.
Faber Taylor A, Kuo FE. Children With Attention Deficits Concentrate Better After Walk in the Park. Journal of Attention Disorders. 2009;12(5):402-9.
Mitchell R, Popham F. Effect of exposure to natural environment on health inequalities: an observational population study. The Lancet.372(9650):1655-60.
Some further reading:
The Nature Fix: why nature makes us happier healthier and more creative by Florence Williams
The Nature Principle: human restoration and the end of nature deficit disorder by Richard Louv
Ahh…outdoor gear. I have a love-hate relationship with it.
On the one hand, I love researching the latest designs and technology relating to climbing, running and camping. More importantly, having robust outdoor clothing and equipment can make the difference between an enjoyable experience and a miserable one, where you can’t wait to get back inside into the warmth. Especially in Scotland. I tend to rediscover this every few years when I attempt to go more lightweight and minimal. In extreme cases it can even mean the difference between life and death.
On the other, I’m all too aware of the environmental impact that certain outdoor products have, and also the impact of consumerism in general.
We should aspire to be gnarly, outdoor athletes in old, battered but functional gear that has seen countless epic adventures, rather than punters in shiny, barely used gear in this seasons colours.
And at the end of the day, it’s not having the latest equipment that counts, but the engine inside.
This applies particularly to running, one of the attractions of which is the sheer simplicity of the sport.
However, when it comes to trail and mountain running, you’d be well advised to invest in a small amount of specialist gear that will last a long time and keep you warm and safe.
If you’re getting started in trail, fell or mountain running (ie. running extended distances in fairly remote backcountry areas, with changeable weather, but no overnight camp) this is the gear I currently use and would recommend as a good starting point.
Trail shoes
Merino baselayer
Shorts (or leggings in autumn/ winter)
Waterproof socks
Debris gaiters
Beanie
Lightweight windproof gloves
Buff
Spare micro-fleece layer
Lightweight waterproof jacket
Lightweight waterproof pants with zip to knee
Race vest/ Small running backpack (10 to 15 litres)
Watch with altimeter
Map, waterproof map case and compass
Phone
Survival bag
Emergency headtorch (Petzl e-lite)
Ultra-lightweight walking poles
Water and snacks sufficient for the route, plus an emergency gel
Obviously this list will vary slightly depending on conditions. For example adding hat and sunscreen in summer, mitts and an extra warmth layer in winter.
The recipe below uses spelt flour and flaxseed. Spelt is an ancient grain, related to wheat. It’s nutrient rich with a slightly nutty flavour. It does contain gluten however, so avoid if you’re trying to follow a gluten free diet.
Ingredients:
Spelt flour 3 cups
Olive oil 3 tablespoons
Rice milk 1 cup
Baking powder 3 teaspoons
Ground Flaxseed 1/2 cup
5 dates, finely chopped
Cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon
3 cardamon pods – crushed (approx 1 teaspoon)
Nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon
Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 180°C
Mix flour, chopped dates, ground flaxseed, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamon in a large bowl
Sift in the baking powder and mix
Add the oil
Mix and rub together with your fingers until you get a fine, breadcrumb like texture
Make a well in the centre and add the rice milk
Mix together until you have a smooth dough, but try not to over-mix or knead the dough
Roll out the dough into a slab about 3-4 cm thick
Cut out your scones using a cookie cutter (or knife); you should get about 6-8 scones depending on size
Place the scones tightly packed on a baking tray
Brush the tops of the scones lightly with rice milk
Place the tray in the oven and bake for 20 mins or until the tops are a light brown colour
I wouldn’t exactly call scones a superfood, but they can certainly be made into a vaguely healthy snack: they’re home made, delicious, especially with home made jam on an autumn or winters afternoon, and can be easily be made dairy and gluten free.
There are countless recipes for scones, but the basic method is extremely simple, which means you can knock out a batch in less than 30 minutes: 5 minutes preparation and approximately 20-25 minutes baking time.
Some recipes add egg to the mixture, but I’ve never found any advantage to doing this, and adding sugar is completely unnecessary – you’re about to cover them in jam!
I’ve given the basic scone recipe below, which is very quick and easy, but check out this other recipe for a more interesting variation.
Basic scone recipe:
Ingredients:
Self-raising flour (gluten free works fine) – 3 cups
Olive oil or butter – 3 tablespoons
Milk (cow’s milk, rice milk, oat milk, it doesn’t matter) – 1 cup
That’s it!
Instructions:
Pre-heat oven to 180°C
Mix the flour and oil/ butter in a bowl
Rub together with your fingers until you get a fine breadcrumb-like texture. (you can sift the flour if you want but I find it doesn’t makes a great difference to how the scones rise)
Make a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in the milk
Mix, just enough so you get a smooth dough, but try not to over-mix or knead
Flour your hands and roll out the mixture into a slab about 3-4 cm thick
Use a cookie cutter (or knife) to cut out your scones – you should get about 6-8 depending on size; place on a baking tray
Brush the tops of the scones lightly with milk
Bake in the oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until a light brown colour
Serve immediately with jam or honey
(Tip: pack the scones tightly together on the baking tray – they will rise better)
