Biggest food myths, strange habits and trends that have shaped us over the decades

From margarine to macros and calorie-counting apps, fat-free fads to fat jabs, and TikTok hacks that promise to completely transform our lives, here's the truth about eating and good health

- BY MATT NIXSON

Every generation believes it’s cracked the code to good health - yet obesity, diabetes and high cholesterol keep climbing, according to nutritionist Rob Hobson.

“Somewhere, we lost the middle ground, and our collective confusion around food has never been greater,” he sighs. Rob, whose new book, The Low Appetite Cookbook, is out now, adds: “I grew up in the 70s and 80s, when dinner came from the oven or a tin and ‘healthy eating’ simply meant clearing your plate. Margarine was a miracle food, microwave meals felt futuristic, and dessert was tinned fruit with Carnation milk.”

Registered dietitian Clementine Vaughan believes confusion has often centred around vilifying a single food or food group, largely because simple messaging usually cuts through more easily than a nuanced approach of moderation and variety.

Sadly, one constant that has been observed through the decades is an increase in overall stress and anxiety over the food on our plates - type, amount, origin - leading to a rise in the use of food as a coping mechanism.

From meat-and-two-veg to TikTok hacks, here's how we got here, and the one nutrient that might help put things right.

1960S MEAT, TWO VEG AND FULL-FAT EVERYTHING

The British diet was simple in the 60s - hearty and home-cooked. Most people ate meat and two veg, usually red meat, potatoes and a boiled vegetable, with bread and dripping, full-fat milk and a pudding to finish. Processed foods like tinned soups, Spam and custard were creeping in, but meals were still largely cooked from scratch, shaped by postwar habits of thrift and structure. Eating out was a rarity and, fish suppers aside, few takeaways existed.

Despite higher calorie intakes than today, obesity was rare because people moved more and snacked less. The diet offered balance and routine but little diversity - so fruit and vegetables were limited to basics such as cabbage, peas and apples.