King Charles is known for his decades-long routine of healthy eating and plenty of exercise, but UK media is agog with the monarch making a major change in his 76th year. Known for being super-fit, Charles has always eaten breakfast, tea and a light supper, but eschewed lunch, calling it “a luxury” he can’t afford to build into his busy schedule. He also previously revealed to the BBC that he doesn’t eat meat or fish on two days of the week, while also avoiding dairy on one day.

However, the Daily Mail newspaper reports that, following his treatment for cancer earlier this year and on doctors’ orders, Charles has begun to include lunch in his diary – with one particular food item at the top of the list: avocado – with the aim of keeping his strength up as he recovers from serious illness. The Daily Mail quotes a source saying: “With some reluctance, he now has something to eat at lunchtime – a snack, really. He now eats half an avocado to sustain him through the day.

It’s important, particularly if you have got an illness.” Charles has been a longtime healthy eater, often enjoying the produce of his own farm at his country house of Highgrove. As the Prince of Wales, he became the UK’s biggest organic farmer, selling products in stores across the country and beyond.

His stepson Tom Parker Bowles is a food critic with a book out, and he told the Daily Mail newspaper last week that Charles makes a point of wasting no food at his table: “Everything is re.