Apple, anyone?

Science has an ever bigger impact on our lives, guiding public policy and, through the internet, increasingly influincing our behaviour directly.  Nowhere is this more obvious than in the sphere of public health, where advice abounds on how to live a healthier lifestyle.

A mainstay of that advice for the last twenty years has been the 'Five a Day' policy - eating more fruit and vegetables a day has been promoted as a means to cut cancer deaths in the UK and other Western countries.

But recent studies call into question the benefits of eating more fruit and vegetables. David Grainger casts an eye over the evidence, and concludes that inappropriate extrapolation from cross-sectional epidemiological studies has lead to some worrying errors in public policy. Well respected institutions, from the World Health Organization to the UK government Department of Health have thrown their weight behind the campaign, and in the process have damaged yet again their remaining credibility.

So what is the truth about diet and health? Read David's article to find out more.