I’m very excited to finally share the cover of my new cookbook, Good Mood Food, and take you behind the scenes of our shoot.
Being the taste-tester for all of these wonderful dishes is a tough job, but somebody has to do it!
Along with @dr.fede.amati , @kathryn_bruton , and a talented bunch of chefs, we shot over 100 recipes for my upcoming cookbook, with plenty of time to eat along the way.
The idea behind the book is very personal to me, and grounded in the latest science. Food that genuinely lifts your mood; not just because it’s delicious, but because it supports your gut microbes which we now know play a key role in how we feel.
These recipes are designed to bring real pleasure to the table while also nourishing your gut and brain health. You’ll find plenty of plants, fibre, fermented foods, and healthy fats throughout.
From comforting pastas to simple sweet treats, feast-worthy showstoppers, energising lunches, a perfect pavlova, and my favourite (and very nostalgic) fish pie, this is truly Good Mood Food.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of these recipes. The link to pre-order is in my bio, or you can search ‘Good Mood Food cookbook’.
As always, thank you so much for your support.
I’ve spent over 30 years working with twins across the UK to better understand how our genes, lifestyle, and environment shape our health.
Through @twinsuk_research , what started as a small study has grown into a community of over 15,000 incredible volunteers who have helped us make real advances in science.
We’re a part of an international research project called PROSPECT, investigating a worrying trend: more and more people are being diagnosed with colorectal cancer at a younger age.
This @twinsuk_research study, led by colleagues at @lifeatkings , is aiming to uncover early biological signals, particularly in the gut microbiome, that could help us detect risk earlier and ultimately prevent cases in the future.
Twins are uniquely powerful in this kind of research, helping us untangle what’s driven by genetics and what’s influenced by lifestyle.
But we urgently need more twins from our cohort to take part.
If you are a twin, part of TwinsUK, or know someone who is, this is a chance to contribute to research that could genuinely change how we understand and prevent cancer.
Your involvement could make a real difference. Click on the ‘Join the TwinsUK registry’ link in @twinsuk_research ’s bio to sign up now, and email [email protected]
I wanted to share a personal story that sits at the heart of my upcoming cookbook, Good Mood Food.
My mother now has dementia and lives in a care home. She no longer recognises me. I know many of you will understand just how devastating a loved one living with dementia can be.
Witnessing her decline over the last decade has made me determined to better understand how everyday choices, including what we eat, might support brain health earlier in life.
We now know that the gut and brain are in constant conversation, and that what we eat can influence how we feel, as well as aspects of brain function over time.
At @zoe , one of the most consistent things we see in our research is that when people begin to eat a more varied, plant-rich diet, many report noticeable improvements in their mood and energy.
The idea for Good Mood Food grew from these insights.
Inside, you’ll find over 100 recipes designed to be both uplifting and nourishing; food that supports your gut, your brain, and how you feel day to day.
From some of my most comforting favourites to brighter, more vibrant dishes, these are recipes to cook, share, and come back. Delicious meals to boost your gut microbes, your tastebuds, and your mood.
I really hope you enjoy them.
@dr.fede.amati and I hopped into the ice bath at @richroll ’s cold plunge setup at @eudemoniasummit , all in the name of science.
Cold water immersion has been around for centuries, and many people swear by it. But when you look closely at the current research, the picture is more nuanced.
There is some reasonably good evidence that cold water can help with recovery after exercise, particularly reducing muscle soreness. Beyond that, things become less clear.
You’ll often hear claims about boosting the immune system, reducing inflammation, improving mood, or even aiding weight loss. In most cases, the evidence is limited, mixed, or difficult to interpret.
For example, cold exposure does trigger a short-term stress response, which might help the body adapt over time. But we don’t yet know what the optimal “dose” is, or whether frequent exposure is beneficial or potentially counterproductive.
Mental health is another interesting area. Some studies suggest benefits, but it’s very difficult to separate the effects of the cold itself from everything that comes with it such as being outdoors, exercising, and often doing it with others.
The same applies to weight loss. There are plausible biological mechanisms, such as activation of brown fat, but in practice, studies don’t show consistent reductions in body weight.
That said, if you enjoy it and it makes you feel good, that’s what matters. And if you do try it, do it safely: ease yourself in, keep it brief, and never go alone.
I’d be interested to hear, is cold plunging something you’ve experimented with?
The term ‘ultra-processed food’ has become a bit of a catch-all, but not all highly processed foods are the same.
When you look more closely at the science, the picture is more nuanced. Some processed foods are clearly linked to poorer metabolic health. They tend to be energy-dense, rapidly absorbed, and often contain additives that may affect the gut microbiome. Others, despite being processed, do not show the same effects and can be part of a healthy diet.
So rather than asking “is this ultra-processed or not?”, a better question is “how might this particular food impact my long-term health?”
That is the thinking behind the Ultra Processed Food Scanner in the @zoe app. For those of you who are new here, I am the scientific co-founder of the gut health science company @zoe .
The UPF Food Scanner automatically identifies high risk processed foods and distinguishes them from lower risk options, based on factors like energy density, how quickly the food is absorbed, and the types of additives used. This helps explain why two gluten-free breads that look similar on the shelf can have very different effects on your body.
Understanding the underlying science, rather than relying on marketing terms, gives you a much more practical way to make decisions that support your gut and long-term health.
You can explore the ZOE app via the link in @zoe ’s bio. And if you are interested in learning more, you can also watch my series What Not To Eat on @channel4 .
UK healthy life expectancy has fallen by 2 years in the last decade, so why is this happening?
A major new analysis shows that healthy life expectancy in the UK has dropped to just over 60 years for both men and women.
That means many people are now spending more of
their lives in poor health, often well before retirement.
What is striking is that overall life expectancy has remained broadly stable. So this is not simply about people dying earlier. It is about people becoming unwell earlier, particularly
during their working years.
We are also seeing widening inequalities. In some of the most deprived areas, people can expect to become unwell nearly 20 years earlier than those in the most affluent parts of the
country.
This is not inevitable. Other countries have not seen the same decline.
This reflects a combination of factors, but diet, lifestyle, chronic inflammation, metabolic health, and the environments we live in all play a role. For example, 40% of cancers are preventable and are linked to bad diet and alcohol, as well as smoking.
If we want to reverse this trend, we need to focus far more on prevention, and that starts long before someone becomes ill.
If your gut microbes could talk, they would not thank you for a sardine fast.
Sardines are a healthy food when eaten as part of a balanced diet. They are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, high in protein, and packed with important nutrients.
But sardines contain zero dietary fibre, and your gut microbes rely on fibre from plants to survive and function. Without it, they have nothing to feed on and ferment. Even over a short period, removing fibre and plant diversity can disrupt the microbiome, which plays a central role in metabolic health.
This is why @theguthealthmd and I do not recommend single-food “fasts”. Your gut thrives on diversity, not restriction.
You may see short-term weight loss, but this is largely water loss and reduced calorie intake. It is not a sustainable or meaningful improvement in health.
There are other concerns too. High sodium intake from multiple tins a day, and the lack of balance you get from cutting out whole food groups.
If you want the benefits of sardines, the answer is much simpler. Eat them regularly as part of a varied, plant-rich diet.
Have you seen other diet trends like this doing the rounds? Let us know in the comments and we’ll take a look at the evidence.
They say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. But when it comes to the vagus nerve, the opposite is true.
Everything happening in your gut is being reported directly to your brain.
For decades, we assumed the brain was the master controller and the gut simply followed instructions. The science now suggests something far more interesting. Around 80% of the signals along the vagus nerve travel from the gut back to the brain.
Your gut is not passive. It is constantly communicating, sending updates about your internal state. And the key players in this system are your gut microbes.
They produce a wide range of chemical signals, interact with your immune system, and can even directly stimulate the vagus nerve. These signals can influence inflammation, mood, stress responses, and even the brain’s reward pathways.
We are only just beginning to understand how powerful this “bottom-up” system really is. But it is already changing how we think about mental health, cravings, and behaviour.
If you want to explore this in more depth, I’ve shared my tips for supporting a healthy gut-brain axis in my latest Substack article. You’ll find the link in my bio, and I’d be very interested to hear your thoughts.
Most people assume fibre and fermented foods are doing the same job for your gut. But a Stanford study comparing the two found something unexpected - and it shifts the conversation about which one you actually need.
Comment ‚412‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
Both improved gut microbe health. But only one group saw a significant drop in inflammation markers - around 25%.
The reason why matters for how you think about building a healthier diet.
To hear more, listen to episode #412 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Tim Spector. #guthealth #fermentedfoods #inflammation
As a scientist, I am naturally curious and always looking for the answers to big questions.
At @zoe , we decided to test one of them with a bold experiment. Could changing how you eat, using the latest science, make a noticeable difference in just short six weeks?
We invited three people to take part. Different lives, different routines, but all dealing with things many of us recognise like low energy, poor sleep, and not quite feeling at their best.
There was no calorie counting and no restrictive diets. The focus was on improving their diet to support their gut health, guided by the science and tools we have developed at ZOE, with counsel from me and @dr.fede.amati .
This was the first experiment I’ve taken part in that was not done in a controlled environment. It was real life, with work, family, stress, travel, all the things that usually get in the way of changing your habits and improving your health.
We measured their health markers at the beginning and at the end, and documented the process throughout. And as true scientists, we committed to sharing the results as they were.
You can watch The Gut Health Challenge on ZOE’s YouTube now via the link in my bio.
I would be very interested to hear what you think.
“Any kind of microorganism within fermented food is for death.”
This statement misunderstands both microbiology and the long history of how we prepare food.
Humans have been fermenting foods for thousands of years, not by accident, but because it makes food safer and more stable. The microbes involved are not random or dangerous. They are specific bacteria and yeasts that lower the pH, produce organic acids, and create an environment where harmful pathogens struggle to survive.
We tend to think of microbes only in the context of disease, but the vast majority are either harmless or beneficial. Our bodies depend on them.
Fermented foods are one of the most direct ways we interact with these microbial ecosystems through what we eat. They help restore diversity that modern diets have gradually reduced.
I wrote an entire book called Ferment on the science and history of fermentation, including some of my favourite recipes, if you would like to learn more.
So no, fermented foods are not “for death”. They are one of the oldest and most effective examples we have of using microbes to support life.
If there’s something you’ve seen online and aren’t sure about, let me know in the comments.
Most people know fibre is ‚good for you.‘
Far fewer know the evidence behind it is stronger than for any other nutrient - and that there’s no upper limit where the benefits stop.
Comment ‚412‘ and I’ll send the link to the episode straight to your inbox.
For every extra 5 grams of fibre you eat, research suggests you reduce your risk of early death from heart disease or stroke by 5–11%.
To hear more, listen to episode #412 of The Proof Podcast with Dr Tim Spector.
#guthealth #fiber #nutrition
