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Conventional nutritional wisdom tells us that starchy foods such as bread, potato, rice, pasta and breakfast cereals take time to be broken down, and therefore deliver a slow release of sugar into the bloodstream for sustained energy.

We are also usually warned that fat is an inferior source of energy as, supposedly, it ‘burns more slowly’ than sugar. Plus, the official line is that fat is fattening, and certain fats (particularly ‘saturated’ fat found in foods such as red meat, eggs and dairy products) can clog the arteries and lead to heart disease.

It is these essential ‘facts’ that have been the major drivers of the traditional dietary advice for us to eat a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet, replete with foodstuffs such as wholemeal bread, wholegrain breakfast cereals, rice and pasta, supplemented with fruit and vegetables. This sort of diet, according to official sources, is nutritional nirvana.

The concepts used to support low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets may look utterly persuasive on the surface, but in this chapter you’re going to see how eating this way can actually play havoc with your energy, concentration and sleep. There’s also good evidence that ‘healthy eating’ may even jeopardize your ability to control your weight and keep yourself free from chronic conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. Key to understanding all this is an awareness of the importance of maintaining stable levels of sugar in the bloodstream.