How good is pizza, but will it hurt? And if so, how much can we eat? On the occasion of the day dedicated to the most famous Italian preparation in the world (last January 17), Salute, which you will find on newsstands on January 26 with La Repubblica, La Stampa and all the newspapers of the Gedi group, in the article signed by Fabio DiTodaro celebrates pizza as a symbol of the Mediterranean diet. A poor dish, in the noblest sense of the term. But which over time has become an icon.
World Pizza Day: the nutritionist’s recipe for the light version
What’s in the pizza
Today there are different types: not only the Neapolitan (soft and thin), but also the Casertana (smaller in diameter and with a high edge), the Roman (thin and crunchy), those by the slice and by the metre, the pinsa ( made with a mix of flour and sourdough). Beyond the tastes, despite its load of kilocalories, pizza remains a healthy food and not to be demonized. Provided it is characterized by a few ingredients: water, flour, tomato puree, mozzarella and extra virgin olive oil.
What’s inside? Above all, a lot of energy. In fact, the kilocalorie contribution of a pizza is not negligible. On paper, those with high caloric needs (2,200-2,300 kilocalories in 24 hours) could also eat a Margherita a day. While those who follow a low-calorie diet (1,400-1,600 kilocalories) must consume it less frequently. Hence the indication that most nutritionists address to people intent on losing excess kilos: no categorical prohibition, but better to limit yourself to the consumption of one pizza a week.
One last question: is pizza bad for you? If consumed as part of a varied and balanced diet and in its simpler versions, pizza guarantees more benefits than risks. The evidence in the scientific literature bears witness to this. The discovery dates back to 2003, for example, that those who eat pizza one or more times a week have a reduced risk of getting various forms of cancer (oral cavity, esophagus, pharynx and colorectal).
How well trees and streams do on Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
by Anna Lisa Bonfranceschi
Nature takes care of us
From pizza to “nature that heals” the leap is daring, but the new edition of Salute also questions this, making it the main theme. The report by is dedicated to this Paula Emilia Cicero. “Doctor nature”, offers a multi-sensory experience: stimulates the brain, promotes positive emotions, enhances memory and promotes creativity. In addition to fighting stress and having beneficial effects on mental health. And not only. So much so that today we talk more and more about Nature Based Therapy.
An example? The data emerging from an interdisciplinary research, involving different specialists, started by the Environmental Neuroscience laboratory of the University of Chicago, reveal that even a brief interaction with a natural environment can improve memory and attention by 20%.
Biofilic design
Even in Italy, researchers are starting to take an interest in these issues, as he explains in the article Valeria Vitalresearcher at the Social Psychology department of the Sapienza University of Rome: “We know that the urbanization process involves a series of risks for psychological and physical health – she says -. Think of pollution, atmospheric and also sound, irritability linked to crowding, to urbanization which limits natural spaces and compromises the visual coherence of the environment with ever taller buildings”.
So much so that the so-called Biophilic design is establishing itself, with the aim of inserting natural elements into urban buildings and health resorts. And transdisciplinary paths such as Ecopsychology are born, dedicated to the connection between the health of individuals and that of the ecosystem. In essence, the results confirm the beneficial effects of nature on children and teenagers. Effects sometimes linked to specific environments, such as woods, but also bodies of water, important on an aesthetic, symbolic but also evolutionary level.
Nutrition, that’s why scientists like postbiotics so much
by Giulia Masoero Regis
Postbiotics are better
Finally, the new issue of Salute focuses on the concept of postbiotics. In the article by Paula Mariano“And now postbiotics are coming”, we talk about the fact that, thanks to a vast family of small molecules produced by intestinal bacteria, we are entering a new era of health and anti-aging: postbiotics, in fact, which promises to prevent many diseases and to help cure them through the integration of these substances into the diet.
Doubts about the effectiveness of probiotics are directing the attention of researchers to the theory that, to keep our health in balance, it is better to rely on these by-products secreted by live bacteria or released after the microorganism’s cell is broken, postbiotics. . Among the most common ones are short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), enzymes, peptides, vitamins. Each of them exerts its effect, often interacting directly with our body through the intestine.
The objectives
The prospects for the future? One, in particular, seems quite ambitious. Some research has undertaken to study whether some postbiotics are able to counteract the growth of tumors. This is preliminary and laboratory work, but some seem to indicate that the waste products secreted by Lactobacillus bacteria can trigger the death of cancer cells, in vitro, or reduce their ability to invade other tissues.