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Study: Potatoes and beans provide most nutrients per penny

A frequently expressed concern in the ongoing public health debate is the lack of affordability of fresh vegetables, especially those that are nutrient dense.

27 May 2013

Journal supplement explores state of nutrition science on white vegetables

Potatoes and other white vegetables are just as important to a healthy diet as their colorful cousins in the produce aisle, according to the authors of a scientific supplement published yesterday in the peer-reviewed journal, Advances in Nutrition.

16 May 2013

Exercise is good for us - no matter what our age

The red double-decker buses that are symbolic of the city of London have an altogether different significance if you study heart disease. Sixty years ago, these iconic buses helped a Scottish medical doctor named Jerry Morris discover the link between physical activity and heart attacks.

15 May 2013

Researchers discover that microRNAs link two defining characteristics of fit muscles

Researchers discovered that small pieces of genetic material called microRNAs link the two defining characteristics of fit muscles: the ability to burn sugar and fat and the ability to switch between slow- and fast-twitch muscle fibers.

9 May 2013

UCLA research: Subway not much healthier alternative than McDonald's for adolescents

Subway may promote itself as the "healthy" fast food restaurant, but it might not be a much healthier alternative than McDonald's for adolescents, according to new UCLA research.

8 May 2013

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics encourages people to learn about celiac disease

Celiac disease is estimated to affect one out of 141 of Americans, or just under 1 percent of the population.

8 May 2013

Hungry grocery shoppers buy high calorie foods

Skipping meals can sabotage your shopping - and your diet, according to a new Cornell study. Even short term food deprivation not only increases overall grocery shopping, but leads shoppers to buy 31% more high calorie foods.

7 May 2013

Experts report new outbreaks and increased spread of Cassava Brown Streak Disease

Cassava experts are reporting new outbreaks and the increased spread of Cassava Brown Streak Disease or CBSD, warning that the rapidly proliferating plant virus could cause a 50 percent drop in production of a crop that provides a significant source of food and income for 300 million Africans.

6 May 2013

Exclusion diet boosts anal fissure healing

Research published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology shows that an exclusion diet combined with medical treatment can increase healing rates in patients with chronic anal fissure who have been referred for surgery.

30 Apr 2013

Roundup: Minn. Democrats push pay hike for nursing home workers; Colo. official warns of possible exchange delays due to IT

A selection of health policy stories from Minnesota, Colorado, New York, Delaware, Georgia, Oregon, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Massachusetts and California.

11 Apr 2013

Study shows genetics could play a role in exercise motivation

Studies show 97 percent of American adults get less than 30 minutes of exercise a day, which is the minimum recommended amount based on federal guidelines. New research from the University of Missouri suggests certain genetic traits may predispose people to being more or less motivated to exercise and remain active.

9 Apr 2013

More concrete data would improve development investment results

Victoria Vrana, senior program officer on the Charitable Sector Support team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, writes in the foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog that "comprehensive sources of hard data on the issues, the solutions, and the organizations working to meet the tough challenges of our time" would assist donors, "non-profits and [non-governmental organizations (NGOs)], media, policymakers, and most importantly, beneficiaries of services" to make decisions that would improve investment results.

3 Apr 2013

Cornell University study examines organic health halo effect

The word "organic" can mean many things to consumers. Even so, the power of an organic label can be very strong: studies have shown that this simple label can lead us to think that a food is healthier, through what is known as the 'health halo effect'.

2 Apr 2013

Mummies provide important twist in understanding atherosclerotic vascular disease

Like nearly 4.6 million Americans, ancient hunter-gatherers also suffered from clogged arteries, revealing that the plaque build-up causing blood clots, heart attacks and strokes is not just a result of fatty diets or couch potato habits, according to new research in the journal The Lancet.

11 Mar 2013

New digital system could identify poisonous plants

Carnegie Mellon University researchers and a botany expert from Carnegie Museum of Natural History are developing a digital system for identifying poisonous plants.

27 Feb 2013

Teaching older adults to use Facebook could help improve their cognitive performance

For older adults looking to sharpen their mental abilities, it might be time to log on to Facebook. Preliminary research findings from the University of Arizona suggest that men and women older than 65 who learn to use Facebook could see a boost in cognitive function.

22 Feb 2013

Considerably smaller snack portions satisfy delayed hunger and craving

How much chocolate would you need to eat to be satisfied? Less than half as much as you think, according to this recently published Cornell University snacking study. Using chocolate chips, apple pie, and potato chips, researchers Ellen van Kleef, Mitsuru Shimizu, and Brian Wansink designed a study to determine if people who were given smaller portions of snack foods would feel hungrier or satisfied fifteen minutes after eating.

30 Jan 2013

Cheese-vegetable combo helps children to reduce caloric intake

Want your children to be healthier snackers? A new Cornell study finds that serving children combined snacks of vegetables and cheese led them to eat 72 percent fewer calories - and be just as satisfied as those who were served only potato chips.

18 Dec 2012

States declare their health exchange intentions

A number of states notified the Department of Health and Human Services how they plan to proceed on the question of setting up an insurance exchange.

17 Nov 2012

Preschool children particularly vulnerable to food-borne toxins

In a sobering study published in the journal Environmental Health, researchers at UC Davis and UCLA measured food-borne toxin exposure in children and adults by pinpointing foods with high levels of toxic compounds and determining how much of these foods were consumed.

14 Nov 2012