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The unholy trinity: fat, food and age - mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fattest of them all? test your fountain of youth nutritional savvy

You have a pretty good concept of what is good for you and your family and what isn't, so you think. And anyway, it's just all too complicated: too many choices, too much conflicting food news, too little time to cook from scratch, too confusing to read labels, too much of a hassle to fight over nutrition with family. Have I missed any excuse? Have I left out any reason for not getting smart about what we eat and what we don't? Let's see just how really smart we are about nutrition. Let's see how well we take care of ourselves and the families we love. Come on, let's take this little nutrition IO test.

1. No time to fix breakfast. What's a better bet, a bagel with some cream cheese or a bran muffin when you're on the run?

A bagel with cream cheese has only 300 calories and 11 grams of fat compared to a six-ounce average bran muffin, which has 600 calories and a disgusting 22 grams of fat.

2. It's movie time. The best choice for a movie snack is a small tub o unbuttered popcorn, a box of chocolate-covered raisins, or a package of red licorice sticks.

Pick the licorice. It is practically far free and half a package is j about 260 calories. Compared to 10 grams of fat in raisins or ; unbuttered popcorn, your choice is clear.

3. You get the most calcium from milk, broccoli, spinach or kale?

A new study has found that we absorb more calcium from kale 1 than from milk, broccoli or spinach.

4. Which is more nutritious, cooked carrots or raw carrots?

This is one time where cooked, as in lightly steamed, releases more beta-carotene, an important antioxidant, than raw.

5. Which is most heart-smart, white wine or purple grape juice?

Wine has gotten all the press, but purple grape juice contains the same heart-saving substance from the skin of grapes that red wine does. Also, wine tends to make people eat more. So purple grape juice is a better pick.

6. What has more calories, a baked potato with cheese or an order of French fries?

If you really have to, go for the fries. A baked potato with cheese weighs in at 475 calories and 29 grams of fat. Fries come in at 234 calories and 12 grams of fat. But your best bet is still the bak6d potato without the cheese.

7. Which of these so-called goodies has the most fat, a double burger with the works, 125 ml (4 fl oz) of premium ice cream, a fast-food salad with a packet of dressing, or a fast-food order of large fries?

The salad with the dressing. Surprised? Shocked? A packet of salad dressing adds 30 grams of fat—about half or more of your daily allowance—and wipes out any virtue of picking the salad in the first place. You were good to pick the salad; next time bring your own nonfat dressing with you and you'll be a winner.

8. Which deli sandwich is usually the lowest in fat and makes the best choice for an office lunch—ham, chicken salad, tuna salad or sliced turkey?

Sliced turkey is the best bet. Ham is fatty and chicken and tuna salads are usually made with mayo. So go for sliced turkey or chicken with a little mustard and lettuce and tomato for a good lunch.

9. How many servings of fruits and veggies are we supposed to eat every day to get the minimum amount of anti-ageing vitamins? Is it three, five, eight, ten or fifteen?

The minimum is five a day. But we should all really be getting at least ten for optimum anti-ageing benefits. What's a serving?

About 100 g (4 oz). Even veggie haters should be able to manage that.

10. What are the most important anti-ageing weight-loss nutrients we need every day?

The answer is vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and calcium. And if you didn't know that, keep reading—it could save your life and buy you an extra five, ten or more years.

Well, how did you do? How well do you really know what you are feeding your face, your skin, your arteries, your brain and every single one of your rapidly ageing chubby cells? If you got even one answer wrong on the nutrition quiz you are in danger of making wrong food choices eve single day. And each wrong choice compounds itself day after day until you have fewer and fewer days left.

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