Archive for January, 2026

Emulsifiers are bad for our gut microbes

January 15, 2026

Emulsifiers are found in a vast range of foods, from supermarket white bread to chocolate.

Emulsifiers damage our gut microbes. Always check the list of ingredients. If contain emulsifiers, put back on the shelves.

Emulsifiers are found in supermarket white bread. Buy sourdough bread from an artisan baker, not the fake sourdough found in supermarkets

dark chocolate

  • cocoa mass
  • cocoa butter
  • sugar
  • vanilla (maybe)

There should be nothing else.

Emulsifiers sre added as a cheap substitute for cocoa butter. Cocoa butter commands a higher price when sold for cosmetics.

Firetree, not quality chocolate, jumps through hoops to justify emulsifiers. Contained in other foods, makes the chocolate smoother, blah blah blah.

The European Health Agency identifies emulsifiers as an emerging risk. Emulsifiers do not exist naturally in our food. Emulsifiers are ubiquitous in ultra-processed foods.

Avoid ultra-processed foods. Choose freshly prepared foods.

Avoid anything with emulsifiers.

Avoid supermarket white bread. Choose sourdough bread from a local artisan bakery.

Avoid chocolate with emulsifiers.

Choose bean-to-bar craft dark chocolate.

  • Bullion Chocolate
  • Dark Room Chocolate
  • Land Chocolate
  • Luisa’s Chocolate

Choose Greek yoghurt, not fake Greek yoghurt, not low fat yoghurt with additives.

What Not To Eat

January 13, 2026

A Channel 4 series where Professor Tim Spector and Dr Kandi Ejiofor investigate ultra-processed foods and the harmful effects they have on our health.

Ultra-processed foods, highly processed foods with additives to make them palatable.

An overweight couple, what they were eating, made me feel sick.

Wine ultra-processed food? Is not a glass of red wine healthy?

Throw out the crap, introduce healthy choices.

Why is it not routine, these measurements taken when we visit our doctor, coupled with advice on healthy eating?

Greek yogurt, not fake Greek yoghurt.

Kefir found in Polish and ethnic shops is superior to that found on supermarket shelves.

An amazing turnaround in six weeks. The couple looked healthier . And the data backed it up. They were an inspiration to all of us.

What Not To Eat @channel4.bsky.social #breakfast – muesli – Jersey Guernsey milk- dried dates- Greek yogurt – kefir- dark chocolate coated coffee beans #diet #health #upfs

Keith Parkins (@keithpp.bsky.social) 2026-01-14T16:35:38.195Z

What not eat Tim Spector @channel4.bsky.social #lunch kimchi pancake Little Korea #food #health #diet #kimchi #ferments #eatyourselfhealthy

Keith Parkins (@keithpp.bsky.social) 2026-01-14T17:34:01.384Z

Primark 4500 mAh power bank and torch

January 13, 2026

Appears well made but very poor design.

A struggle to open the packaging.

Inside, a white box and the power bank.

The white box contained as I thought, a concertinaed instruction manual. Every language under the sun, tiny print that requires a microscope to read. And when did read, when find English, it was useless

Power bank appears well made, emphasis on appears.

Power bank very poor design. Integral cables, never a good idea, are a point of failure. But not even cables, far worse, connectors. How to connect to anything?

There is what appears to be a usb C port. Input, output, both? Not obvious.

Appears to be fully charged but is not. Connect  to phone (with difficulty). This will break off. Connected for a second. Bars drop to three bars.

The power bank has an integral stand. Why? Another weak point. It will easily break off.

The white box also contains a cable. Maybe half a meter in length. USB A to USB C.

A button to press. Instructions give no explanation. Press once, shows the bars, charge on the phone. How to turn on the torch?  Play around, does turn on, but useless if need quickly to turn on the torch.

Press and hold to turn on the torch. Press and hold to turn off. Illumination good.

Usb C port. Charging, half capacity, one hour and fifteen minutes. At least it verifies as in. Not out.

Very poor design.

As a torch, useful. Fits in a pocket. Snug fit in the hand. But bloody useless as a power bank due to shoddy integral connectors. A better design would be to provide ports.

AI bubble

January 11, 2026

Everyone is kind of realising that every single AI company is unprofitable. Every single one of them loses money. — Ed Zitron

The AI bubble is about to burst. It’s no longer if, it’s when. This will be worse than the dot com bubble.

AI is not sustainable. It is gobbling up Capital with very little return, draining natural resources, water and electricity, scraping intellectual property, music and the written word.

Capital is drying up. Capital that could be better invested elsewhere.

What can we do with AI?

Grok can strip naked a young woman without her consent. The first thing she is aware of is when she finds naked pictures of herself posted on-line, by when too late.

X is being threatened with a ban and punitive fines in the UK. Far better, migrate to blue sky but retain X account. Better still, take your friends with you, the network effect.

Who blinks first?

Crazy Appetite spaghetti carbonara

January 9, 2026

Spaghetti carbonara, not a dish I’ve tried before.

Crazy Appetite located on the south side of St Benedict’s Square, High Street between Boots and M&S.

Always check the specials menu. A soup and the main dish.

Stand By Me

January 8, 2026

Stand by Me Ben E King classic Lady Gaga and Sting.

What happens when follow Zoe nutritional advice?

January 6, 2026

For the start of the New Year, a different format for Zoe. Instead of a couple of experts in discussion with Jonathan Wolf, two people Beck and Mark l from different perspectives, why they followed Zoe nutritional  advice, what they expected to gain, and did the advice meet expectations? Plus additional input from Tim Spector and Sarah Berry.

Becky struggling with weight control. Yo-yo diets. Calorie counting does not work. Now is able to maintain desired weight without dieting.

Mark eating what he thought was a healthy diet but did not feel healthy but does now.

A healthier diet , feel better.

Focus on the quality of food, not counting calories. Counting calories, too simplistic.

Eat three Mars bars, ok, so long as within the calorie quota. But what if, ate other than a few Mars and still within the calorie quota?

The expose on fat, The Big Fat Surprise, which for many will be an eye opener.

M&S nutritional bullshit

January 6, 2026

M&S pulled this scam last year. Customers were stood by the display laughing, commenting it was ultra-processed food. Needless to say, by the end of the month, sold off.

They pulled off the same stunt previous years, plant-based, Veganuary. Again by the end of the month, sold off.

Here we go again, unproven claims, nutritional bullshit. The difference, dotted around the Food Hall so can’t find. Even the staff when asked could not find.

A display on entering the Food Hall. All I could find was high protein white bread. White bread! White bread laced with additives, including emulsifiers.

White bread is not healthy. Everything of nutritional value has been extracted.

Emulsifiers should be avoided. Damage gut microbes.

The average person on a varied diet consumes more than their daily requirement of protein. Additional protein is not stored. It passes through or is converted to sugars and fat. Be wary of the protein scam. What people are short of is fibre, not protein

Buy sourdough bread or wholemeal. Not from M&S, from a reputable independent artisan bakery. M&S sourdough bread is of very poor quality.

Ninety percent of nutritional information on social media is wrong.

Without exception, food promoted in a supermarket as healthy, is not.

Eight ways to eat better in 2026

Sincil Street cold wintry January afternoon

January 5, 2026

Last night, the first snow of the season.

Ladt fre nights, -4C -5C, tonight -6zC

Sincil Street a very Dickensian scene.

Sincil Street cold wintry January afternoon #SincilStreet #Victorian #Lincoln @looknorthbbc.bsky.social

Keith Parkins (@keithpp.bsky.social) 2026-01-05T16:10:36.466Z

Sincil Street cold wintry January afternoon #SincilStreet #Victorian #Lincoln @looknorthbbc.bsky.social

Keith Parkins (@keithpp.bsky.social) 2026-01-05T16:11:20.713Z

Loss of heating

January 5, 2026

We take for granted our heating , less so when we cannot afford to heat our homes.

What then when it fails?

That is what happened to me Sunday afternoon. The central heating failed.

Luckily I was able to drag an oil-filled radiator out of the conservatory, turn the oven on in the kitchen, and turn the immersion heater on for hot water.

The previous night, -5C, last night -6C.

Big jumper, scarf, cushions either side of me and behind me, a little cocoon around me to stay warm.

Slowly the temperature dropped.

It was not only keeping warm, it was stopping the house from freezing, pipes bursting.

Counterpane on the bed, coat and jumper on top. 

Oil-filled radiator, oven and immersion heater left on overnight.

What of the homeless, living on the streets? Or Ukraine, power supplies targeted by Putin?

Morning, dig out the snow, clear the drive and footpaths of snow.

Luckily a plumber arrived late morning.

The problem was not as I thought, thr boiler. It was a pump. The plumber had a spare in his van.

Very icy. Van slipping.


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