It seems logical that a diet high in saturated fat should make you gain weight. But what if you ate the same number of calories from fruit and vegetables? Something instinctively tells you that you wouldn’t gain the same amount of weight, but why is this?

Recent research has shown that diets high in saturated fat - and if you don’t know what’s saturated or not a good rule of thumb is too see if solid at room temperature - actually cause damage to parts of the brain. These areas of the brain not only control food intake but also how the body uses glucose and how much energy is turned into fat. This research tells us why a diet high in saturated fat is bad for us and makes us fatter than calories from other foods.

Dr Lynda Williams has been the leader of the Metabolic Health Group at the RINH since 2003. Research interests in the group range from molecular biology and animal models of nutritional manipulation to human dietary intervention studies all looking at the interaction of nutrition on health and obesity.

She has coordinated a large EU funded project on “Obesity and Disease in Ageing”. Her particular research interests have centered on the role that nutrition plays in the induction of obesity specifically the impact of a diet high in saturated fat on inflammation, which is a hallmark of obesity and obesity related disease. Her recent research findings include a rapid effect of a high-fat diet on gene expression in the brain related to inflammation and cognitive function.

 "Britain is a Christian country and we should not be afraid to say so…  Just as our language and culture is steeped in the Bible, so too is our politics." David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 16th December 2011

This event will examine just what influence religion holds in society, but specifically in the world of politics, from some of the people who would know these topics best.  We will hear from those involved in the fight for equal marriage, for access to abortion, and for assisted suicide.

Patrick Harvie MSP will explain how religious pressure has affected the push for LGBT rights, specifically regarding the effort to extend the right to marry to same-sex couples.  Patrick Harvie is the Co-convenor of the Scottish Green Party, and has served as an MSP for Glasgow since 2003.  Patrick became involved in politics after campaigning for the repeal of the infamous Section 28, which outlawed the "teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship".

Prof. Wendy Savage will speak similarly about how access to abortion services has been influenced by religious bodies.  Wendy is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, is a former president of the Medical Women's Federation, and coordinated Doctors for a Woman's Choice on Abortion.  Described as "an inspirational leader in women's health", she was shortlisted for the BMJ Group Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

Dr Libby Wilson will speak on assisted suicide and euthanasia.  She pioneered family planning services in London and Sheffield, and spent a year in Sierra Leone working in reproductive health, before founding Friends At The End (FATE) in her retirement.  Libby is now the convenor and medical advisor for FATE, and is regularly invited on television and radio discussion panels to speak on euthanasia and assisted suicide.  In 2009, she became the first person to be arrested under the new guidelines on assisted dying.

Video games are often demonised in the media for everything from encouraging school shootings to stopping people socialising, and yet despite this, their popularity continues to increase. With more and more people now playing video games, should we really be worried? Are we all going to end up as overweight, socially incompetent video game addicts or can video games actually be a force for good? This talk will discuss at least some of the evidence regarding both the positive and negative effects of video game play, arguing against some of the common myths and showing the surprisingly productive ways video games can be used.

Emily Collins is a Research Associate at the UCL Interaction Centre, having recently completed a Ph.D. on the psychology of video game “addiction” at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her previous research has investigated violent video games and aggression, driving games and real life driving behaviour and the cognitive and social outcomes of video game play. Emily’s current research is looking into the occupational applications of video games, and how they could be used to recover from work-related stress.