Leading article: Good eating

The journal Environmental Health today publishes a study by scientists from the Occupational Health and Safety Institute in Sweden which demonstrates that probiotic yoghurt drinks boost our immunity. Over an 80-day period, volunteers taking the drinks were two-and-a half times less likely to take time off work for minor ailments such as colds and stomach bugs. How long, we wonder, before employers begin leaving bottles of the stuff on workers' desks each morning?

Yet, if one looks closely, there is no shortage of foods to make us healthier on the supermarket shelves these days. Benecol - a margarine that can lower your cholesterol - has been around for a while now. Bread enriched with folic acid is being consumed by pregnant women after studies showed it meant they were more likely to give birth to healthier babies. Omega 3 eggs, which lower the risk of heart disease, are also on the shelves.

So despite the widespread gloom about our diet, it has never been easier for us to take our medicine. Could the increasing popularity of these probiotic, cholesterol-lowering, health-boosting groceries mean food is on the verge of becoming glorious once again?