How to fight festive fat

A Glasgow University researcher has a seasonal message for all those planning to overindulge on Christmas Day - take a hike. Jason Gill, of Glasgow's department of neuroscience and biomedical systems, has found that a 90-minute walk lowers fat levels in the blood, even after a meal laden with fat and carbohydrates.

Dr Gill's study, funded by the British Heart Foundation and published this week in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology , investigates how exercise works in reducing the build-up of fatty deposits in blood vessels, cutting the risk of coronary heart disease.