Truth About… Renewed For Series 2 By BBC One!

Charlotte Moore, Controller of BBC One and Tom McDonald, Head of Commissioning for Natural History and Specialist Factual Formats, today announce the commission of a further four episodes of the highly successful ‘Truth About…’ strand, the channel’s new science series that launched earlier this year.
When the series debuted on BBC One, it garnered an average audience of over four million viewers per episode. The first two titles to be announced are The Truth About Alcohol and The Truth About Health Foods; a further two titles will be announced in due course

Tom McDonald says: “I’m thrilled that the first series of The Truth About…. really resonated with viewers, reaching a broad and diverse audience in their millions. For our next series, we’ll be revealing the very latest science on the subjects that really matter to our viewers with some of the best scientists and journalists fronting individual films.”

The Truth About Health Foods

In The Truth About Health Foods, the programme will ask, “just how healthy are the health foods we all buy?” From smoothies to superfoods, supplements to weight loss tablets, are any of their claims to make us healthier backed by real science?

Britain’s health food industry is worth an estimated £2 billion, but are we spending a lot of money on products that are essentially no better for us than a bag of crisps or a fizzy drink?

The market in dietary supplements is worth a staggering £13.5 billion worldwide, as more people turn to ‘miracle’ fat loss or muscle-building products. Yet many of the claims behind them are unsubstantiated, the ‘miracles’ unrealistic, and in some instances, even dangerous.

The programme will also look at the claims made about so called ‘superfoods’. The whole concept – that certain vegetables and fruits contain special ‘powers’ – has only been with us for about 15 years. Since then, the antioxidant label has been firmly stamped on a whole host of products, including green tea, goji berries, red wine, pomegranate and certain vegetables. But what is the truth behind these assertions?

Could we be just as healthy with some cheaper, more basic alternatives, and out of the thousands of health food products on our shelves, do any of them actually do what they say on the tin?

The Truth About Alcohol

Is red wine better for you than white wine? Why do some people get drunk more quickly than others? What’s the ultimate hangover cure?

As the government urgently re-evaluates alcohol consumption policies, The Truth About Alcohol applies the latest science, and talks to some of our top research scientists, to investigate Britain’s love affair with booze.

But these experiments will not be conducted in pristine laboratories. In the Truth About Alcohol, our lab is the pub, where Britain’s leading alcohol scientists will debunk the many myths of our drinking culture, and lift the lid on the surprising behaviour of our drinking volunteers.

BBC