London - With sizzling pepperoni and oozing cheese slathered on an often greasy base, it doesn’t tick many boxes for the health-conscious.
But now scientists claim to have created the world’s first nutritionally balanced pizza – with a special ingredient.
The low-fat dish, containing 30 percent of an adult’s recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals, is made with seaweed.
It has a third of the recommended daily amount of calories, protein and carbohydrate – exactly the right amount for one of your three meals.
A tiny amount of the seaweed, from the Hebrides, is added to the dough to act as a natural alternative to seasoning and provide minerals which are lacking in most supermarket equivalents.
The recipe was created by Mike Lean, of Glasgow University, and businessman Donnie Maclean.
Professor Lean, who is also a consultant at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, came up with the dish after years of research into improving Scottish diets.
He said: “One of the things that hit me early on is it is a big step forward if you simply make meals nutritionally balanced.
“Pizza is a pretty good choice. If you get the balance right, it’s not far off.”
Supermarket pizzas often contain high levels of salt, which can cause high blood pressure and strokes, and saturated fat, which leads to hardened arteries.
The Eat Balanced pizzas are topped with a tomato sauce enriched with red pepper to boost Vitamin C content. Magnesium, folates and potassium are also included in the recipe.
Frozen to preserve the nutrients, they come in flavours including cheese and tomato and Highland venison and have been successfully taste-tested. A major supermarket chain has already indicated it will stock the pizzas. - Daily Mail