Mark Lucock ends his review of the science of folic acid by quoting Hippocrates: “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” (p 211). Although many patients are convinced of the importance of food in both causing and relieving their problems, many doctors' knowledge of nutrition is rudimentary. Most feel much more comfortable with drugs than foods, and the “food as medicine” philosophy of Hippocrates has been largely neglected. That may be about to change. Concern about obesity is rocketing up political agendas, and a growing interest in the science of functional foods is opening …