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And the lockdown continues. Most of the country has been homebound for more than two months due to the global pandemic, which makes going to the local market to shop for your groceries is even less appealing than usual. This is why a meal kit service just may be the solution for people looking for healthy home-cooked mealsduring thecoronavirus crisis.

We've been on the meal delivery service bandwagon for a while now, and what follows is a list of our favorite picks for delicious and nutritious meal options. Even better, many of them -- including Freshly, Blue Apron, Sun Basket, Every Plate and Gobble -- are currently offering deals for new customers. And those deals are good. Like, several free meals good. There's absolutely no reason you need to put on a mask and real pants to get your groceries anymore!

We're sure that most of you have probably noticed cheerful meal kit company boxes from the likes of Blue Apron,Freshly,Home Chef,Sakara Life, Purple Carrot andGobble making ever-more-frequent appearances on your neighbors' stoops over the last several years. Trully,age of the meal kit food delivery service is upon us. Each meal delivery company provides a type of convenience service that combines the efforts of chefs, nutritionists and personal grocery shoppers, and delivers them into the hands of enthusiastic eaters or willing home kitchen cooks, with weekly menus and delicious, preportioned fresh ingredients including vegetables and meat for you to easily prepare. The variety of meal delivery program options available today is just staggering, with everything from fully prepared meals to gluten-free healthy meals to vegetarian options available and ready to ship. That means that people with special diets such as a diet for healthy weight loss don't have to exclude themselves from reading further. It's time to find the best meal kit delivery service for your needs whether you are a picky eater, vegan, on a keto diet or another special diet.

I once met one of the founders of Blue Apron, whose meal delivery kit box I'd become familiar with, thanks to the denizens of my apartment building. I mentioned that I thought the Blue Apron service sounded like a cool idea, but inundated him with a litany of reasons why such a thing didn't apply to me: I work in an industry where tasty meals are often provided, I'm rarely home, I'm culinary school-trained and so on. His counterargument was flawless: "Can I send you a free box?" I mean, duh.

Despite my protestations, the reasons I enjoyed the Blue Apron meal plan were plenty, and inspired me to continue my subscription with an occasional box of ingredients. Even with culinary school cred, I liked having ingredients I didn't know of or would rarely seek out when grocery shopping put directly into my hands. I was especially moved by the concept of getting provided the single rib of celery that a recipe demanded, sparing me the heartache of watching an entire head of celery languish in my produce drawer when left to my own devices.

There are now dozens of meal kit delivery programs to choose from, like Sun Basket,Martha & Marley Spoon andPurple Carrot, with a variety of healthy meal and niche meal selection customizations. These meal kit delivery service options have ingredients and menus available to fit special diets like vegan gluten-free, vegetarian gluten-free, plain old gluten-free, paleo, low-carb, vegetarian pescatarian, keto, plant-based, health conscious diet and just about anything else when it comes to dietary preference. You'll also often find promotional offers for new customers and convenient features like being able to skip weeks and cancel anytime. With limited or no commitment, if you're a calendar master and an account-management ninja, you can dabble in any or all of these services and choose, week-by-week, which best suits your circumstances.

Read more:Best air fryers of 2020: Philips, Cuisinart, Black and Decker and more

Home Chef boasts over 38 meal kits to choose from in any given week, including the all-new grill packs and one-pan dinners. Meal kit examples include Chipotle Chimichurri Mini Pork Meatloaves with Roasted Sweet Potato and Garlic Peppercorn Salmon Scampi with Garlic Cream Gemelli and Broccolini. Plus, you can customize the protein in your meal choices, which makes Home Chef dishes stand out from the pack. For example, with some Home Chef recipes, you can order double the protein such as chicken or meat without doubling the overall portions. With other Home Chef options, you can choose to order antibiotic-free protein instead of the standard version. Meal kits and ingredients are usually pretty standard in their offering (which is what keeps Home Chef efficient to the masses).

One new and unique offering from Home Chef is their oven-ready meals, which come with everything you'll need to make the meal including the cooking tray (no messy kitchen and no dishes). See an example of anoven-ready meal here.

Subscription: Starting at $7.99 per serving with additional premium Home Chef recipes offered at market price.

Read more:The best toaster oven is the one you'll hate the least

Healthy and fresh are common favorite meal kit descriptors, but Sun Basket goes a step further. Sun Basket is committed to organic, non-GMO, sustainably and responsibly raised products and ingredients, which it packages in 100 percent recyclable materials to boot. Basically, the box took the trip to the farmer's market for you.Sun Basket's recipes are developed by Justine Kelly, a San Francisco chef known for her work at the James Beard Award-winning Slanted Door restaurant, and for her appearance on Top Chef. All of her easy and delicious meals with organic ingredients are nutritionist-approved (500 to 800 calories per serving), and most meals take only about 30 minutes to prepare, with online Sun Basket tutorials available if you need a little extra guidance. You've got options for these nutritious meals too -- you'll be able to choose from a selection of six to 18 different organic meal recipes each week, including paleo, vegan meal, vegetarian and gluten free meals, so you'll always get what you want. Sun Basket delivery is available in 36 states, and Sun Basket shipments arrive on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. For three Sun Basket meals each week, you'll pay $74.93 for the two-person plan (or $11.99 per serving) and $143.87 for the four-person plan ($10.99 per serving), with a $5.99 shipping fee either way.

Subscription: For three Sun Basket meals each week, you'll pay $74.93 for the two-person plan (or the $11.99 price per serving) and $143.87 for the four-person Sun Basket plan ($10.99 per serving), with a $5.99 shipping fee either way.

A few of these services provide fully cooked, ready to eat meals to your doorstep, and Freshly is a good one if you desire wholesome, tasty comfort foods such as peppercorn steak, penne bolognese or chicken and rice pilaf. Meals are prepared right before delivery and are never frozen. With minimal reheating required by you, it's like having Mom cook dinner for you in your kitchen, without having Mom live with you. (Sorry, Mom.)

Subscription: $8.99 to $12.50 per serving, with up to 12 servings per week. Shipping is free.

At just $4.99 per serving and with an emphasis on delicious, hearty meal options and generous portion sizes, EveryPlate is the best plan for those whose journey into meal kit delivery is based on affordability. It keeps its overhead low by offering eight easy recipes to choose from weekly, which does mostly exclude vegetarians and those on special diets, but the eight available meals are full of variety and flavor otherwise. Get 18 meals for only $3.33 each, free shipping on your first order, plus the ability to skip or cancel anytime.

Subscription:Each serving is only $4.99. Each weekly box includes three recipes with either two or four servings apiece.

Blue Apron is largely accepted to be the granddad of meal kit delivery programs in the US. The eight menu choices available weekly range from simple pastas to delicious international options, with a seafood and vegetarian option always available. Even the simplest recipes might include an unfamiliar component or two, and the website often highlights these ingredients as an educational opportunity. Recipes are tagged with helpful keywords such as "customer favorite," "quick and easy," "great for grilling" and so on. Occasional promotions include a menu from guest celebrity chefs, or recipes that highlight popular travel destinations. An optional wine pairing service is also offered.

Subscription: Price per serving ranges from $7.49 to $9.99, with options to prepare two to four recipes per week and two or four servings per recipe.

Dinnerly rolls out some pretty exciting-sounding and delicious meals such as summery chicken panzanella and risotto with asparagus and cannellini beans. But with no more than six ingredients per recipe, the damage done to your time and kitchen is minimized. Along with not overwhelming you with myriad ingredients and multiple steps, the price tag for Dinnerly puts it squarely in the budget-friendly category, clocking in with a cost per serving of around $5.

Subscription: The options include a Two-Person Box for $30, or a Family Box for $60, each with three recipes for the week.

Gobble takes the template from the old guard of meal delivery kits but speeds it up by prechopping and part-cooking many of the components so that all recipes have a prep time of 15 minutes or less. Despite the "fast food" angle, each menu has a sophisticated and worldly vibe. Weekly recipe choices are cleverly categorized into From the Range, From the Ranch, From the Sea and From the Earth options.

Subscription: Options range from $11.99 to $13.99 per serving, with options for two to four servings of two or three (or more!) recipes.

HelloFresh helpfully tags each recipe accordingly, whether you are allergic to (or avoiding) dairy, gluten, soy, nuts and so on. Familiarity of ingredients is key, even when applied to dishes from various world cuisines. A Hello Fresh's portion sizes are generous, going with its relatively high cost per serving (up to $10 a person). "dinner to lunch" element is a unique twist that provides the home cook a variation on tonight's dinner to serve as a tasty portable lunch tomorrow.

Subscription: Options range from $8.74 to $9.99 per serving, with options for two to four recipes per week and two or four servings per recipe, customizable along Classic, Veggie and Family plans.

We like Green Chef for its versatility in the different specific diet plans available. Green Chef offers paleo, keto, pescatarian, vegan, and vegetarian options as well as gluten-free meals. No matter which diet you're following (for health or personal reasons) you'll be able to find a Green Chef plan that works for you. Because it offers so many different diet plan choices, this also makes Green Chef one of the most versatile meal kit delivery services since you get a plethora of different tasty menu options per week.

Subscription: $12.99-$11.99 per serving for a two-person Green Chef subscription at three meals/week; $10.99 per serving for a four-person Green Chef subscription at two meals/week.

Now playing: Watch this: 4 unexpected tricks for a better cookout

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The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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The best meal kit delivery services of 2020: Blue Apron, Freshly, Sun Basket and more - CNET

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Looking for a simple dietary change that can improve your stamina and help you run faster in as fast as four days? If so, then the Mediterranean diet might be what you need.

Mediterranean Diet: Run Faster In Four Days

Thanks to numerous researchers, studies and people who actually experienced the results, weve all been praising the Mediterranean diet for quite a while now. More of a lifestyle than a diet, this strategy has been known to help with inflammation, promote heart health, improve organ function and even reduce the risk of your developing depression.

But did you know that for athletes who want to improve their performance and endurance, the diet can come in very handy too?

Thats right, because a study made by a team of researchers from Saint Louis University (SLU) in Missouri revealed that people who follow the diet are known to improve their running and endurance by six percent in a mere four days. The team reportedly recruited a group of men and women and required them to run on a treadmill after four days of eating the diet strictly. As for what they ate, it involved at least three servings of nuts and fruits, four tablespoons of olive oil and at least two servings of vegetables. Additionally, they also limited their consumption of meat, sodas and sweets.

From this, the team was able to conclude that following the diet helped them move six percent faster than when they were on a diet high in refined sugars, fat and salt.

Many individual nutrients in the Mediterranean diet improve exercise performance immediately or within a few days. Therefore, it makes sense that a whole dietary pattern that includes these nutrients is also quick to improve performance. However, these benefits were also quickly lost when switching to the Western diet, highlighting the importance of long-term adherence to the Mediterranean diet, Edward Weiss, studys senior researcher and a professor of nutrition and dietetics, said.

Like the general population, athletes and other exercise enthusiasts commonly eat unhealthy diets. Now they have an additional incentive to eat healthy, he added.

Running a marathon has been found helping people reverse the hearts biological age and improve cardiovascular health. Pixabay

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Want To Run Faster? Here's The Diet Change That Lets You Do It In 4 Days - Medical Daily

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HIROSHIMA Diet member Anri Kawai is suspected of giving cash to voters in Hiroshima during her successful campaign for the 2019 Upper House election last July, sources familiar with the situation said Saturday.

The 46-year-old wife of former Justice Minister Katsuyuki Kawai, known for his close ties to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, made her Diet debut by winning the election. Both are members of Abes ruling Liberal Democratic Party.

The couple, suspected of buying votes, may have handed out over 20 million ($182,000) to around 100 people in connection with the campaign, the sources said.

Some supporters of the couple, including local assembly members, have already confessed to Kyodo News that the 57-year-old former justice minister offered from 50,000 to over 100,000 to each person. In some cases, the candidate herself dispensed cash to local voters, the sources said.

Prosecutors, who have been investigating the scandal for months are seeking to charge the former minister and possibly his wife for breaking the Public Offices Election Law after the Diet closes for the summer on June 17. Lawmakers have special immunity from arrest while the Diet is in session.

The two denied the allegations during voluntary questioning by the Hiroshima District Public Prosecutors Office, according to investigative sources.

In March, secretaries of the couple were charged with bribery for paying 2.04 million to 14 campaign staffers for their work on the election, exceeding the legal cap of 15,000 per person per day.

The prosecutors have been investigating whether the alleged bribe money may have come from some 150 million the LDP gave to Anris campaign.

Katsuyuki Kawai was special adviser for foreign affairs to Abe before being named justice minister last September. He stepped down from the post the following month after the election scandal broke.

The prosecutors have found that Katsuyuki Kawai orchestrated the campaign for his wife, investigative sources said earlier.

In the Upper House election, the LDP battled for two seats in the Hiroshima constituency by backing Anri Kawai and veteran lawmaker Kensei Mizote. But Mizote lost his seat because the conservative voters were divided.

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LDP's Anri Kawai suspected of buying votes during 2019 Upper House election - The Japan Times

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Indian fashion fraternitys self-appointed watchdog, Diet Sabya, has finally started reposting again and is giving us all lessons in the history of Gandi copies. The Instagram handle which is synonymous for calling out celebrities, stylists, designers, alike for ripping off the work of others had been raising awareness of the condition of employees working in Indian companies, fashion and otherwise, during the coronavirus pandemic, calling the companies out for mistreating their employees and wrongfully laying them off. And given that most celebrities are homebound, the handle which usually calls out Gandi copies, be it outfits or styling, was otherwise quiet. However, much to our delight, the handle finally posted a video giving us all some lessons into the history of plagiarism in Bollywood. The video collage had a model wearing a Versace jacket during one portion and in another were Madhuri Dixit Nene and Sanjay Kapoor, dancing to the tunes of the 90s classic, Akhiyan Milaoon Kabhi Akhiya Churau, in which Madhuri is seen wearing a gandi copy of the Versace jacket.

While the sparkling, embellished Versace jacket and matching crop top was worn by model Christy Turlington as she walked the ramp for Versace in 1992, Madhuris much less flashy version was seen in the 1995 movie, Raja. Diet Sabya cheekily captioned the post, Did you know? The real tea is that Ana Singh created a rather modest version of Gianni Versaces iconic 1992 collection worn by Christy Turlington for Madhuri Dixit Nenes iconic Raja song (released in 1995). Happy #25yearsofraja (Documenting this for fun so that kids can enjoy some fashion history), calling out Madhuris designer for that outfit, Ana Singh.

However, Ana Singhs response was so honest and on point that even Diet Sabya couldnt help but call her a legend.

Ana wrote very confidently of her work, My director sent me a reference to make so the call was not mine. Access to clothes was impossible and requirement needed to be fulfilled. I was sent the book Vanitas by Gianni Versace.She jokingly added, Just did the job. And sorry but no sorry its an excellent copy.

Diet Sabya posted her reply on their story dubbing Ana a legend, but this resulted in a flurry of responses from other designers and stylists who spoke of how they had to do what the client wanted, and how directors are adamant of what they want. One even said, Its what the client wants and what youre being paid for, is the implied message, to which someone responded that it was 100% true, and Diet Sabya posted the response in his story with the question, So clients and brands are the root of all evil?

Diet Sabya also posted another collage of a poster of the timeless 90s hit sitcom FRIENDS that was shot for the cover of Rolling Stones magazine by Mark Seliger alongside an eerily similar poster of the boy band Band of Boys Meri Neend.

Diet Sabya captioned the post, Meri Neend Ud Gayi Hai Mera Chain Kho Gaya Hai Tere Copy Mein Meri Jaan Yeh Kya Ho Gaya Hai. Left: @friends poster/Rolling Stones cover by @markseliger; Right: #bandofboys Meri Neend poster. #vintage #gandi #copy #history.

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Diet Sabya gives history lesson in gandi copies with posts of Madhuri Dixit, Band of Boys ripping off... - Hindustan Times

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WW - formerly known as Weight Watchers - has been helping people shed the pounds for years thanks to its easy points-based system and weekly workshops.

Two women who have first-hand experience of the popular diet are Natasha Summar Allen and Louise Eccleston, who have shed an impressive 7st between them.

NATASHA Summar Allen, 33, is a stay-at-home mum and vlogger, and lives in Stalybridge with husband Andrew, 44, an administrator, and children Harrison, 10, and Layla, seven.

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Natasha says: Looking at myself in the mirror, I was close to tears. The size-16 top I was wearing was too small and had ridden up over my tummy like a crop top.

I hated what I saw, but I was so used to food being my comfort that changing my ways was terrifying.

Growing up in Manchester, I was always a size 6-8, at 5ft 7in, despite regularly tucking into my mums big portions of Middle Eastern kebabs, casseroles and biryanis.

I met my husband Andrew in June 2006 when I was 19 and studying law at Staffordshire University.

I was a size 8-10 when we met, but over the course of the next year I began to slowly put on weight as we shared takeaways together on the sofa.

I always hated the gym, so was very inactive, and my weight crept up to a size 14 by October 2007. I never felt full, and sometimes after dinner wed go to a McDonalds Drive-Thru where Id polish off three double cheeseburgers.

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I knew I was putting on weight, as I started having to buy size-18 clothes, but Andrew reassured me that I looked great.

I had our son Harrison in February 2010, followed by daughter Layla in January 2013, and actually lost weight during both my pregnancies, going down to a size 12, as I suffered with hyperemesis gravidarum (severe vomiting) and was hospitalised as I couldnt keep food down.

But after both babies, I comfort ate as I felt constantly tired, ballooning to a size 16. With two young kids, I was so busy that I didnt have time to cook for the whole family, so I began to rely on ready meals and freezer food.

It was when I finally weighed myself in June 2018 that I knew something had to change. I was 12st 2lb and a size 16-18, and when I looked in the mirror I felt unattractive and frumpy.

Although I knew Andrew loved me and was attracted to me, Id often complain to him that I hated how I looked, and it really affected my confidence.

My sister Zeinah, 35, had lost 8st on WW, going from a size 28 to a 14, so I decided to try it out for myself. I signed up online, and started using the recipe builder to make meals from scratch.

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Natasha's meals...

THEN

Breakfast: Full English with bacon, sausages and toast

Lunch: Big bowl of pasta with sauce and garlic bread

Dinner: Curry with rice and naan

Snacks: Sandwich, McDonalds, toast, sweets and cake

NOW

Breakfast: Fruit and yoghurt or porridge

Lunch: Warm chicken salad or butternut squash soup with home-made bread

Dinner: Home-made burger or curry

Snacks: Fruit

Id not cooked much in the past, but I loved making burgers, soups, or chicken and rice. Snacks would be fruit or home-made cake. I didnt drink much alcohol anyway, but I cut it out completely.

The changes felt small, but they soon stacked up, and in the first week, I lost 4lb. Over the next year, I steadily lost between 2-3lb per week.

I didnt exercise, but as a mum of two, I definitely burned off extra calories running around after the kids. When I hit my goal weight of 10st 5lb in June 2019, I was over the moon.

At a dress size 10, I could buy whatever I wanted from Topshop, and Andrew noticed a huge change in my confidence. I felt so much sexier and more attractive around him, plus I had more energy to play with the kids.

The changes felt small, but they soon stacked up, and in the first week, I lost 4lb.

I found losing weight on the plan so easy that I changed my target, and now Im a dress size 6-8 and 8st 2lb a total loss of 4st.

These days I still follow a lot of WW recipes. Ive also been posting videos on my YouTube channel of my WW meals, and theyre really taking off my food is even being featured in a new Asda advert!

LOUISE Eccleston, 30, is an events performance manager for a hotel group and lives in Richmond with fianc Michael, 32, a kitchen designer.

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Louise says: Standing at check-in, I burst into tears of embarrassment. A member of airline staff had just asked if I was pregnant.

I wasnt, Id just put on weight. It was the final straw it was time for me to get back in shape.

As a teenager, I kept my weight down with regular dance classes, and was always around a size 10 and 9st.

When youre younger, you eat what you want without thinking about it, but looking back my diet wasnt very healthy I always loved fast food and big roast dinners.

I met my fianc Michael on a dating app in April 2014 when I was 24 and working as an events manager. Straight away we got into the habit of eating a lot together.

We had a favourite Indian takeaway and Id order a korma and garlic naan. If we were meeting friends for dinner, wed drink loads of wine and finish off with cheese.

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Working in the hotel industry, I stay overnight at our hotels several times a month, and would always try out the restaurants, ordering steak and chips washed down with wine and a big chocolate dessert.

I never weighed myself, but over the next four years I gradually got bigger.

By the time we went on an all-inclusive holiday to Turkey in April 2018, at 5ft 7in I was a size 14 and felt self-conscious by the pool, constantly wearing a sarong.

When youre younger, you eat what you want without thinking about it, but looking back my diet wasnt very healthy.

But it didnt stop me demolishing pizza and chips and drinking sugary cocktails at night. It was when we flew home that one of the airline staff asked if I was pregnant.

Id had an amazing holiday, but it was suddenly ruined. When I got home, I stepped on to the scales and was shocked to see I weighed 12st 11lb.

Id heard of WW, and signed up with the goal of losing 3st. I did some meal planning, and shopped using the apps barcode scanner to see how many points were in food.

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Louise's meals...

THEN

Breakfast: Bowl of cereal

Lunch: Ham and cheese baguette, crisps

Dinner: Beef burger with sweet potato fries

Snacks: Chocolate bar

NOW

Breakfast: Wholegrain toast, avocado and poached egg

Lunch: Tuna with green salad and grains

Dinner: Paprika chicken with lentils, couscous and green beans

Snacks: WW wafer biscuit and grapes

Breakfast became poached eggs and wholegrain toast, and lunch was salad. I began cooking dishes such as paprika chicken, which came in at zero points, and lasagne made with butternut squash pasta, which is lower in carbs than regular pasta.

Im not a fan of the gym, but I walked more, which made a huge difference.

The weekly WW workshops were a bit scary at first, but everyone was so friendly. I lost 1st in the first six weeks and was able to fit into a size 12, which spurred me on to lose more.

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By December 2018, Id lost 3st and was back to a size 10. Michael said I looked great but, that best of all, I seemed happy again.

We went back to Turkey in April 2019, staying in a hotel with healthy meal options, and I felt confident in my bikini.

Im maintaining my weight as a gold member and still cook WW recipes, as they couldnt be easier and they taste delicious.

GOT a story? RING The Sun on 0207 782 4104 or WHATSAPP on 07423720250 or EMAILexclusive@the-sun.co.uk

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Two women reveal how Weight Watchers alone helped them lose 7st between them - The Sun

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In The Martian, the 2015 film directed by Ridley Scott, astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is accidentally abandoned alone on Mars by his crewmates after an emergency evacuation, without enough food to survive. Mars is a tricky prospect for even the most red- fingered gardener: theres almost no air, the soil has few nutrients and lots of heavy metals, and the temperature is typically around -60C. Im going to have to science the shit out of this, Watney, a botanist, declares. He decides to grow potatoes, jerry-rigging a climate-controlled dome, burning hydrazine to make water and creating a growth medium from Mars dust supplemented by his crewmates faeces.

In Star Trek they just replicate food out of pure energy

One might expect proper scientists who are actually trying to work out how to grow food on Mars, with a view to supporting human life there at some point in the not-so-distant future, to be sniffy about such far-fetched speculation. The Martian? Thats my favourite movie! exclaims Dr Wieger Wamelink, a senior ecologist at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, who has been conducting experiments on cultivating plants in space since 2013. Its the only sci-fi movie where growing food is very important.

When Wamelink started his experiments, many people thought his work was left-field and then some. Now, thanks to The Martian, originally a 2011 novel by the American writer Andy Weir, at least they understood what he was trying to achieve. The movie helped tremendously, Wamelink says. It also, counterintuitively, supplied hypotheses he can test. The journey to Mars takes half a year, he tells me on a video call from his garage in Wageningen, an attractive town on the Rhine, not far from Arnhem. So store all your poo and pee. Thats your starter kit, what you need to get started in the soil. Actually, The Martian is totally correct there. It may be smelly, but its so important.

The 53-year-old Wamelink, who has a goofy sense of humour and, coincidentally, a passing resemblance to Matt Damon, has a background in plant breeding. Until recently, he had a conventional academic career at the university, which is world-renowned for its work on agriculture and forestry. However, Wamelink kept on being passed over for research grants: he was told once that his proposals were not innovative enough.

In the shower one day, Wamelink began to ponder the idea of food production in space. A fanatical Trekkie (but I dont go to conventions and I dont wear costumes), he found that his immediate point of reference was sci-fi. In Star Trek, its easy: they just replicate food out of pure energy, says Wamelink. If you look at Deep Space Nine, Commander Sisko likes to cook and he uses fresh vegetables. But they never show where they come from. Only in the original Battlestar Galactica series from the late 1970s, in which the fleet was followed by vast agro ships, was there a nod to the practicalities of life away from Earth.

Wamelink drew up a new proposal: a theoretical study into growing plants on the Moon and on Mars. He was given 25,000. Wamelink then discovered that you could buy Nasa-endorsed regolith simulant, essentially soil from Earth that has many of the properties of that found in space: the moon soil came from a desert in Arizona, and the Mars simulant from the side of a volcano on Hawaii, which is then cleaned and rolled to make it more dusty. Wamelink decided to make his experiments practical: what could he actually grow in these weird, nutrient-poor soils?

In a greenhouse, Wamelink began with garden cress, which he planted on 1 April, 2013. Not a very handy day, he reflects now, because nobody believed us when we started it, especially journalists. Wamelink did not have especially high expectations. He was particularly concerned that lead, mercury and zinc in the soil would end up in the water that the plants absorbed and that they would then be toxic to eat.

But, to Wamelinks surprise, the cress grew and, crucially, the plant did not take up the heavy metals. In the years since, Wamelink has refined the process. By adding organic matter (leaves and roots from the previous harvest) to the soil and earthworms to break it down, he has radically increased the size and quantity of the plants. He has also expanded the variety of crops: not just cress and salad leaves but tomatoes, peas, radishes and root vegetables such as carrots and potatoes. Mars will come to fear my botany powers, Mark Watney predicts in The Martian and Wamelink intends to make good on the promise.

Moreover, Wamelinks research suddenly seems much less wacky. Against expectations, a 21st-century space race is under way, driven by national governments and hyper-wealthy private individuals such as Richard Branson and Elon Musk, who created his aerospace company SpaceX from a dream to grow a rose on Mars. Donald Trump wants US astronauts back on the Moon by 2024. The idea of establishing a base there, probably in advance of onward travel to Mars, is clearly on some minds. In January 2019, Chinas Change-4 probe became the first spacecraft from any nation to land on the Moons far side. The mission took a few seeds, including cotton and potato. A cotton seedling even sprouted for a short period before dying in the harsh cold of the lunar night.

When I started the experiment I was in contact with Nasa and other space agencies, but the general idea was: Food? Yeah, you just bring it along, recalls Wamelink. Its boys and toys I always say, so rockets, satellites things that cost lots of money that you can tinker on. Its those things they are working on. And well, thats changed.

Its not exactly correct to say that food in space has always been an afterthought. In 1979, Soviet cosmonauts aboard Soyuz 32 took eggs from Japanese quail: there were hopes that the fertilised eggs a valuable source of lysozyme could hatch in space and supplement the cosmonauts diet with further eggs and meat. It was more complicated than they anticipated and it was not until 1990 that healthy quail chicks hatched (though they struggled especially with feeding in zero gravity and required tiny harnesses). Nasa tried similar experiments with chicken eggs in the 1980s. The Japanese have sent live fish to the International Space Station, and also looked into crop growth and edible insects. However, theres a new urgency to the research.

If youre on the space shuttle for just a week or two, of course, youre going to take everything with you, says Dr Gioia Massa, a plant scientist at Nasas Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Its like a camping trip, youre not going to do agriculture on short-duration trips. But were finally getting to the point where we see going back to the Moon by 2024, we see going on to Mars in the future. These things that were really far out are now coming closer. And you cant just turn these things on overnight. You have to start testing in advance for when we go there.

Massa works on Nasas Vegetable Production System, known informally as Veggie, which since 2014 has been cultivating plants in and for the International Space Station. The project has had success growing three types of lettuce, Chinese cabbage, red Russian kale, mizuna mustard and zinnia flowers in space. The astronauts are allowed to eat some of what they propagate (the rest comes back for testing), and it supplements their diet of 180 long-life foods, plus around 20 condiments and beverages that they consume on an eight-day cycle. In March, Massa published research that found space lettuce was not only safe to eat, but as nutritious as the crops the Veggie team was producing on Earth.

My husband actually teaches science fiction and fantasy at a local university

Like Wamelink, Massa is a sci-fi fan. Science fiction had a huge impact on me and still does, she says on the phone from Florida. My husband actually teaches science fiction and fantasy at a local university in Orlando. So hes imagining things and Im trying to take those imaginings and make them real.

The Veggie programme, though, differs from Wamelink on how best to grow the crops. Instead of using an approximation of the soil found on the Moon and Mars, Massa and her team have a system she calls modified hydroponics: because of the complications of microgravity, the plants are grown in a solid substrate of baked, porous clay, which keeps water and oxygen around the roots. A time-release fertiliser supplies nutrients, light comes from LEDs and the astronauts add water.

Its not a perfect set-up, Massa concedes. Veggie is a passive system, and it requires a lot of astronaut time to add water and guessing how much water to add, she says. So were walking this tightrope between a flood and a drought, and we fall off a lot. Still, for now, Massa believes that Veggies modified hydroponics system has the most potential for supplying astronauts with fresh food in space that is certifiably safe to eat. For example, Martian soil is known to contain perchlorates, a toxic chemical (not present in the simulant soil used by Wamelink) that is poisonous to humans even in very small amounts.

Both Massa and Wamelink agree that if we are to solve the problem of how to grow plants in space, we need to pursue multiple strands of investigation. And no ideas are too outlandish to rule out. Recently, Wamelink has been mulling over how you could get pollinators to Mars: he likes bumblebees (which could hibernate for the six-month journey) and flies, which could also be a source of protein if you are happy to eat the larvae. Hes even been looking into human urine, purified, as a potential source of fertiliser. To get enough raw material to test, Wamelink approached festival organisers in the Netherlands.

Wasnt he worried about the alcohol concentration? Yes or even worse! Its in Amsterdam so he replies. But they do some checks on it and theres no THC and all those things you get into pee if you smoke some dope. And thats important because you dont want to get the people over on Mars sick.

This all might seem a little esoteric for the regular gardener, but both Massa and Wamelink believe their work will also have an impact on Earth, even in our humble gardens and allotments. Massa points out that Nasa funded the research group that came up with LEDs for plant growth in the 1980s, a technology that is now widely used. The space agency has also invested in Florikan, a controlled-release fertiliser that could help reduce the environmental problem of fertiliser run-off in waterways and estuaries. Things like urban agriculture, vertical farming, factory farming, we share a lot of information between these groups, Massa says. We learn from them, they learn from us.

Covid-19 has slowed down some of the research, but not for long. Massa can go to the Kennedy Space Center for mission-essential work and the Veggie units on the space station continue unhindered. Shes particularly excited that Nasas unmanned Perseverance rover is still due to leave for Mars on 17 July, expecting to land in February 2021.

As for Wamelink, he aims to do one major experiment a year and hes already achieved that in 2020. He is also using the time for reflection and idea generation. At home, Ive got a pond and some fruit trees and my own vegetable garden, he says, looking out of his window. Really, its like being on Mars.

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Gardens of the galaxy: can you grow vegetables on Mars? - The Guardian

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Earlier this year, the UK government issued a nationwide lockdown to respond to the coronavirus crisis.

Since then, gyms have been closed and most people have been asked to stay indoors as much as possible.

While this is sure to have got in the way of many fitness plans, slimmers can still stay healthy at home.

Jessie Pavelka, fitness and wellbeing expert who has recently launched the app, JP4, shared four ways to get into shape without leaving the house.

READ MORE: Weight loss: This is the best time to eat to burn belly fat

When it comes to changing the diet, slimmers do not need to follow restrictive plans.

In fact, eating more colourful foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, can change the body, the expert suggested.

Jessie told Express.co.uk: "Eat. Food heals, nourishes and nurtures our bodies and our minds. It brings us together, connecting us to ourselves and the world around us.

"Colour on your plate is always a good start to eating to feel good.

With gyms closed, finding the right exercises can be more challenging.

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However, slimmers should focus on making sure they move each day, no matter what they do.

"Focus on that sweat element," Jessie said. "Each day we have an opportunity to live through our bodies.

"We must make time to give ourselves the gift of movement. Whether thats 20 minutes or an hour, show up!

To stay on track, those hoping to slim down should make an effort to think about what they are doing.

He continued: "Keeping fit and healthy at home can be less about exercise, and more about motivation.

"Its like your choice of meals; we all have a general idea on what we need to eat to be healthy, but the question is why do we make those choices? Motivation starts with awareness.

Dieters can also focus on different goals each day to help get into a healthy routine.

The expert added: "So that you can clear away mental clutter and look at your choices with a clear perspective, using what I call the Four Elements can help.

"They give you a framework that enables you to show up as the best version of you, something you can engrain into your daily routine.

"Ask yourself each day if you have focused on each one, that is Eat (diet), Sweat (exercise), Think (awareness) and Connect (connection to your feelings, and others) and youre on the road to success.

Creating the right mindset will also help slimmers get the best results while at home.

By taking time to process, dieters could set themselves up for the day and it could promote healthy habits, the expert suggested.

Jessie explained: "Think and Connect are both relative to mindfulness. When we Think, it fosters heightened awareness; consideration towards our actions.

"There is great power in simply being in the moment, especially in the challenging times that we all face, so we need to stop and just focus on the 24 hours we are in.

Connection to ourselves, another person, a group (via technology perhaps) or something greater than ourselves will help you continue to retain perspective, and ultimately together we have the opportunity to achieve more.

Read the original post:
Best weight loss: Eating more of this food can help burn fat during lockdown - expert tips - Express

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But is there a place for good diet and nutrition in the management of COVID-19 spread and treatment according to experts. They have argued that malnutrition severely weakens immunity, increasing peoples chances of getting ill, staying ill, and dying because of illness

President, Federation of African Nutrition Societies and the immediate past President, Nutrition Society of Nigeria, Professor Ngozi Nnam stated that though diet is not a risk factor in contracting Coronavirus, diet can help in curbing it, as it plays a significant role in helping individuals recovery process.

According to her, healthy diet is very important at this time, because consuming diet rich in food nutrients will boost the immunity. COVID-19 is a virus, with no vaccine to treat it at present, so we are relying on body immunity to fight and kill it. Some people after testing positive will receive care and days after, they will test negative, it is because their body immunity is high. Yet, some people that went to the isolation centre with them will still be receiving treatment, ten days after they are still positive.

The treatment they are getting is not for the virus, the treatment is to take care of the manifestations, as a result of the virus attacking the body system. So, the virus would be suppressed, if the individuals immune system is high, because the individual has the ability to fight back the virus.

The implication is that we should be taking adequate diet rich in nutrients that can help boost our immune system. And such nutrients are Vitamin A, B complex, D and E, because vitamins are good at boosting the immune system. And the foods that are rich in these vitamins are within reach. We have fruits and vegetable, which are often neglected in meals. So, at this time, we need to take a lot of fruits and vegetable, including avocado peer. Then, the normal legumes and cereals; all help us to grow well; rice, beans, yam very important with vegetable.

The nutritionist, nonetheless, said Nigerians should not wrongly believe that with high immune system, they cannot contract Coronavirus, good nutrition only helps to weaken the virus when it enters the body, as the high immune system will suppress and not allow it to thrive.

The professor of nutrition noted that taking unhealthy diet would lead to malnutrition, which makes the body immunity to be very low, and if such a person gets infected with COVID-19, the virus will continue to thrive and multiply in the body system, with the system unable to fight and kill it.

And the likelihood of recovery will be longer, and the person is likely to develop complications as a result of COVID-19. The numbers that are being announced is not the actual number of people that are infected with COVID-19, the number is much higher, because many people are infected without knowing, their immune system is suppressing it and there will be no manifestation of symptoms sometimes till they recover. Some may even have mild manifestation, but because they are not very sure they have it, they do not call the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) officials, yet they will recover, because their immune system has suppressed the virus, so that is the place of nutrition.

Mind you, we have avenues for all these nutrients, like vitamin D, just coming out during the early morning sun, the skin will synthesize enough Vitamin D from the sunlight. You dont need money for that, just stay in the sun during mid-day for 30 minutes.

Nnam said as the country continues to battle the pandemic, it is important government and all stakeholders step up nutrition advice to get people informed about healthy eating.

She noted that some Nigerians do not feed well, not necessarily because they do not have money to buy food to feed well, but because they are not well informed. They do not buy food that they can combined for adequate diet. Some will buy expensive food, thinking it will give adequate diet; it might not necessarily be, so people need to be informed.

Some people say it might be difficult for the poor to eat adequate diet, no, because not all nutritious foods are expensive. The rains are here; vegetables are cheaper in the market now. And some of the foods are still within the reach of the poor because most of the locally available foods are rich in these nutrients; the protein foods- beans and crayfish are good components, Nnam said.

Dr Patience Ikeme Ogbuli, a nutritionist, said By healthy nutrition, we mean adequate consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, protein of high biological value, and reasonable daily calorie, less consumptions of sweet foods and beverages, and adequate intake of water daily. Safe and healthy practices that will help build immune health include limited alcohol and tobacco consumption, possibly total cut off tobacco, daily exercises, adequate sleep and less stressful lifestyle.

It is rather unfortunate that it took COVID-19 pandemic to expose the poor immune health of Nigerians. The majority of Nigerians due to insufficient finances, power failure, excessively long working hours, and lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables depend on vendor and street foods for daily subsistence. Indomie, bread, high carbohydrate foods and snack, and sugary beverages, and low protein foods are the mainstay nutrition in Nigeria. It cannot be a mistake that hunger, malnutrition and poor unhygienic environments will kill many Nigerians before COVID-19 may find them to finish the job.

It behooves the stakeholders of our nation to consider the pandemic of hunger, starvation, and filthy environment and attack it more aggressively than the pandemic of COVID-19. The former has killed and will continue to kill more Nigerians than COVID-19.

On availability of advice on nutrition advice, Ogbuli said advice would make sense if the people have good chance of adhering to the advice. Rather, she said government should improve food supply and make them affordable. We have enough people in the nation to do the job of nutrition education. It takes job restoration, improvement in job creation, and improved wages to begin to heal the nation. She said that it is the responsibility of all stakeholders to change the picture of the pathetic nutritional status of many Nigerians, not just that of government alone.

On her part, a Clinical Nutritionist, Funmilola Wunmi Ijiwola stated that healthy food doesnt necessarily mean expensive, as the key point in achieving healthy diet is knowing the right quantity and quality of nutrients to be included in a meal.She advised Nigerians to eat seasonal foods, which are cheaper. Beans with sweet potato and grated crayfish cooked with palm oil makes an adequate diet. Also,eating avocado pear with bread and vegetable, which is now in season, are rich in fatty acid and protein. Using fruits in season as snacks also contributes to healthy eating and good health status.

She noted that malnutrition causes a general imbalance of nutrient composition in the body, its either low nutrient, which is deficiency or too much nutrient, which is excess. If their is an imbalance, the body doesnt function well and the malfunction will eventually lead to symptoms that can be corrected with adequate diet or lead to a permanent damage of some organs or system in the body.

Ijiwola also implored government to step up advocacy for good nutrition, because food is the first drugs to make the body function well and ensure good health. If our food intake is taken care of, there wont be need for treatment of disease conditions. Good nutrition is the perfect description of prevention is better than cure

Dr Abimbola Odusote, also a nutritionist stated that a virus as COVID-19 attacks the body and the body fights back to overcome it, so if the body is not healthy and the immunity is not strong, the virus would overwhelm the person.

A person can build his immune system through what he feeds his body. It cam also be through rest, reduction of stress, adequate exercise, sunlight and fresh air. This is the time to up our micronutrients, eat lots of fruits, vegetables and remove the junk foods. Those giving out palliatives should consider what are in the packs- are they packagedprocessed foods?Why not consider adding fresh fruits and vegetables to the packs? We have lots of fruits rotting away that can be put to good use.

Odusote said it is important that people learn what foods to buy with little money, which is why nutrition advice at this time is important.

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COVID-19: Nutritionists counsel on advantages of healthy diet - Guardian

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Since January 30, I have not seen my menses after taking Clomid. I also most times feel nausea, even though a number of pregnancy tests all turned out negative. What do I do?

Safiya, Kogi.

I will suggest you see your Gynaecologist again instead of home treatment. Let me advise that, though you have done pregnancy test three times and it all turned out negative, it should still be repeated before taking medication for normal menstrual flow.

PAP SMEAR: HOW OFTEN?

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How frequent is it advisable to do a Pap smear test? I am thirty-eight-year-old now. I last took the test in 2017.

Mrs IK, ABUJA

Pap smear is recommended annually or once every two years.

COULD IT BE ECTOPIC?

A family friend had a baby like 6 months ago and somehow took in last month again. They decided to abort the pregnancy since it was still in its early stage and by taking some self-prescribed medications. A pregnancy test still shows positive, indicating a pregnancy is still there, but a scan shows otherwise. Could it be ectopic?

Chioma, Karu (ABUJA)

There are two or three different possibilities. One is the fact, that the pregnancy may still be there, despite the attempt at termination. This may be due to underside or failure to respond. Another possibility is the fact that a pregnancy test becomes negative between about ten to fourteen days after miscarriage or termination of pregnancy. While your suggestion of ectopic is also a possibility. I will suggest Transvaginal scan, and if done by an expert whether intrauterine or ectopic pregnancy, it can easily be picked at this stage.

Quantitative serum beta hCG may be necessary where there is doubt.

DIFFICULTY IN PASSING URINE

My husband finds it difficult to pass urine. Even when he does, its very little and he goes at frequent intervals. Sometimes he wets himself before getting to the toilet. What can be done?

Mrs Ayodele, Gwagwa, Abuja

How old is he? If he is around fifty years or above? The possibility of prostate disease is high. It may be either benign prostatic enlargement or prostatic cancer, among other things. Kindly take him to see an Urologist.

WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS?

My first two pregnancies were both delivered by Caesarean Section. I am 41-year-old and currently in my last trimester of a pregnancy. I have been booked for another CS in three weeks time. My doctor says, because of my weight and hypertensive state, I should do bilateral tubal ligation during the operation. I dont like this. Please what are my options?

Mrs Abdulmumuni

This question had been addressed before. But when we are dealing with family planning, it cannot be overemphasized.

I agree with the recommendation of your doctor in view of your medical history of hypertension, obesity, age and number of operation for bilateral tubal ligation. Because most of the other effective options are hormonal which is not too suitable for the background medical history.

But if you still object other options include mechanical like male and female condoms, intrauterine devices and safe period. The latter is not reliable with a high failure rate. Another option if your spouse can agree to male sterilization.

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GENESEE TOWNSHIP, MI -- Dort Highwasy resurfacing and the final phase of work on the Carpenter Road Bridge is scheduled to begin Monday, June 8, according to the Genesee County Road Commission.

The 2.5 miles of M-54 from Coldwater Road to Mt. Morris Road in the city of Flint will be resurfaced through a $4.9 million investment by the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Work includes joint repairs, shoulder reconstruction, curb and gutter, signal modernization and a road diet that will change the current lane configuration to allow one lane in each direction with a dedicated center left-turn lane.

One lane in each direction will remain open during the project.

This work will improve the roadway surface and signal operations, according to the road commission. The addition of a road diet will reduce rear-end and sideswipe crashes.

The commission will also re-close the Carpenter Road Bridge in Genesee Township Monday, which crosses over the Flint River.

The closure will be the last of a sequence, according to the commission. It is anticipated to last about a week as the road commission places an epoxy overlay treatment over the new deck as a preventative maintenance procedure.

Traffic will be detoured via Genesee, Stanley and Bray Roads. Motorists are advised to allow themselves additional time to reach their destinations.

Any questions can be directed to Alexander Patsy at 810-767-4920.

Read more:

Portion of M-65 in Arenac County closed for bridge repair following flooding

Carpenter Road bridge repair to close lane on portion of I-75

I-75/I-69 interchange closed for week of maintenance

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Dort Highway resurfacing and Carpenter Road Bridge work to begin next week - mlive.com

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