It is thought the sandwich was first conceptualised by a wise old Jewish sage called Hillel the Elder.

Apparently, the filling between the two layers of flatbread that represented this ancient snack was a type of sacrificial lamb, serving as a reminder to the Israelites of their forced labour constructing Egyptian buildings.

Very fitting, as a huge percentage of us, while hunched over keyboards and papers in a modern parody of forced labour will be turning to the sandwich for a quick and tasty working lunch.

But did you know that many of our favourite sandwich options contain more fat than a Big Mac? Shocking but true. In fact, a fairly innocent looking tuna salad bloomer could contain about 40 per cent more fat than a Big Mac, with most brands' cheese and onion options coming out at more than 22g of fat per 100g, almost twice as fatty as a
Big Mac.

The perfect working lunch should be low in saturated fat and refined sugars, so as not to overwhelm the already stressed but static systems of the average office worker.

If we consume too much fat and refined sugar during a typical sedentary day at work, our bodies are thrown into a state of confusion about what to do with this sudden influx of food energy.

So, as we are already in a mildly stressed state and pumping out low levels of adrenaline, our body decides that it had better do two things: firstly, divert blood away from our digestive system, as our stressed state tells our body we may need to shortly run away from a predator (our physiology doesn't understand that most workplace predators wear sharp suits and use the lift), and, secondly, realising that we aren't going anywhere just yet, our bodies release chemical messengers to ensure that the excess energy from our lunch is stored.

Unfortunately, the bulk of this excess energy will be cleverly but inconveniently stored as fat around your middle, as close to your liver as possible.

So, as stated, the perfect working lunch needs to be low fat and full of slow release carbohydrates, so that your body isn't overwhelmed with a sudden influx of excess energy which can't be metabolised effectively.

It should also be full of the nutrients that your body uses by the bucketful in stressful situations, namely magnesium and the B vitamins. If we don't replenish these through our diet, then our bodies may become progressively less able to cope with stress.

Most of us don't have time to pack up a lunch in the morning, so I've trawled the shops and come up with my favourite take-out lunches, which should leave you feeling energised (how many of you feel like a snooze a couple of hours after your sandwich?), more able to cope with the stresses of the day and stop your waistline expanding as you sit at
your desk.


The top three working lunches


M&S Sweet Chilli Chicken and Butternut Squash Salad – this option wins by a mile. Not only is it low in fat with plenty of good quality protein and slow-releasing carbohydrates, but it contains a multitude of stress-busting ingredients. Chilli not only has a reputation as an anti-ulcer aid, but it has also been shown to stimulate and enhance digestion.

Even better, chilli can increase your metabolic rate, stimulating the burning of fat for energy. This salad also contains pumpkin seeds, which not only contain compounds which may prevent spotty skin and thinning hair (stress-related problems), but also contain loads of blood sugar balancing zinc, as does the chicken. The carotenes in the squash contribute powerful anti-cancer properties. A perfect lunch.

Asda Sweet Chilli Chicken Salad – minus some of the glitz of its M&S contemporary, but a good choice nonetheless.

Tuna Niçoise Salad – most brands do a good one of these, packed with stress busting B-vitamins and slow release energy guaranteed to help keep blood sugar stable.