'I'm a doctor - here's the one 16p food you should eat to boost gut health'

Adding one 16p freezer staple to your dishes can be incredibly beneficial to improve your gut health and increase vitamin consumption, according to a nutrition expert.

Creator of Zoe Health, Tim Spector, took to his Instagram to rave about frozen peas and the bountiful effects they can have on your health.

In fact, he says the frozen vegetable particularly has more health advantages compared to its fresh counterpart.

In a video, Tim shared his easy hacks to enhancing a gnocchi dish from recipe site Mob, aimed at reducing the intake of processed foods.

He said: "I love gnocchi but most of the stuff you buy is ultra-processed, so I'm swapping them out for these butter beans, which are going to go perfectly with this recipe.

“So, I've got some edamame here and frozen peas, which I love. I'm going to use crème fraîche, which is a slightly fermented food that adds microbes extra taste and flavour. There you have it - a comforting but nutritionally rich recipe that you'll love.”

In the caption of his post, he said: “Swap fresh peas for frozen. Frozen peas are cheaper and available all year round! Contrary to what you may think, they can actually have more vitamin C than fresh peas."

He elaborated on adding nutritional value with: "I’ve also added frozen edamame so you get double the plant points and a boost of plant protein."

The little vegetables are packed with good nutrients.

BBC Good Food states a serving of 80g of cooked peas contains 5.4g of protein, 4.5g of fibre, 1.2mg of iron, and a worthwhile 13mg dose of vitamin C.

In a previous appearance on BBC Morning Live, Tim continued raving about peas.

He said: "Most people don’t think of frozen peas as a health food. It’s a good alternative to protein from meat."

"Your gut produces all these chemicals that are key for your immune system, key for your brain, they stop you getting depressed, keep your metabolism under control, control your weight, stop you getting hungry.

"So the more your microbes get to eat, the more chemicals they can produce, the healthier you are. Forget this five-a-day, what you need is 30-a-week."

You can currently buy a bag of frozen peas for £1.45 for 910g from Sainsbury’s, making a 100g serving as cheap as 16p.