Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Latest Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Interventions that improve nutrition and environmental conditions can help decrease child deaths worldwide

Interventions that improve nutrition and environmental conditions can also provide substantial gains toward the goal of reducing child mortality, especially when the interventions prioritize the poor, according to a study in the October 24/31 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on poverty and human development.

22 Oct 2007

More fast food means greater body mass index

Americans are less willing to pay more for healthy dishes, less knowledgeable about healthy menu items, and more likely to consider healthy items bland tasting, finds a Temple University analysis.

22 Oct 2007

40 percent of men and 30 percent of women are overweight

A new global study revealed that 40 percent of men and 30 percent of women are overweight, while 24 percent of men and 27 percent of women are obese, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

22 Oct 2007

The truth about your immune system

Vitamins, minerals, and herbal supplements can help complement a healthy diet and lifestyle, but consumers shouldn't count on them to boost their immune response, says the new edition of a Harvard Medical School report, The Truth About Your Immune System: What you need to know.

22 Oct 2007

Coronary heart disease and women

Women who eat a healthy diet, drink moderate amounts of alcohol, are physically active, maintain a healthy weight and do not smoke have a significantly reduced risk of heart attack, according to a report in the October 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

22 Oct 2007

Exercise improves thinking and reduces diabetes in overweight kids

Just three months of daily, vigorous physical activity in overweight children improves their thinking and reduces their diabetes risk, researchers say.

22 Oct 2007

Whole grain breakfast cereals may reduce risk of heart failure in men

Men who consume a higher amount of whole grain breakfast cereals may have a reduced risk of heart failure, according to a report in the October 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

22 Oct 2007

Scale back on weight obsession, urges obesity expert

"We need to change how we look at obesity, stop obsessing on weight and BMI and, above all, redefine the proper clinical use of weight loss drugs," says noted obesity expert Dr. Jean-Pierre Després, delivering the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Lecture at the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress 2007.

22 Oct 2007

Smoking, alcohol, being underweight and poor diet all risk factors for osteoporosis

If you smoke, drink more than two units of alcohol a day, are underweight, don't exercise or eat well, you could be setting yourself up for osteoporosis later in life, according to a new report issued by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF).

22 Oct 2007

Fast foods full of salt

Researchers in the UK have found that some popular fast food meals are "shockingly high" in the levels of salt they contain.

22 Oct 2007

U.S. schools making progress in decreasing availability of junk food

U.S. schools have made considerable improvements in their policies and programs to promote the health and safety of students, particularly in the areas of nutrition, physical activity and tobacco use, says a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

22 Oct 2007

800-year-old mummies from Mongolia help advance DNA extraction

Dr. Heather Coyle and three forensic science graduate students at the University of New Haven have developed a new method for preparing certain skeletal remains for DNA extraction thanks to some 800-year-old mummies from Mongolia and the research the group is doing for the Smithsonian Institution.

22 Oct 2007

Exposure to sunlight may decrease risk of advanced breast cancer

A research team from the Northern California Cancer Center, the University of Southern California, and Wake Forest University School of Medicine has found that increased exposure to sunlight - which increases levels of vitamin D in the body - may decrease the risk of advanced breast cancer.

19 Oct 2007

FDA details safe sources for imported puffer fish

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has released consumer and industry advisories regarding safe sources of puffer fish.

19 Oct 2007

Sunlight may decrease risk of advanced breast cancer

A research team from the Northern California Cancer Center, the University of Southern California, and Wake Forest University School of Medicine has found that increased exposure to sunlight – which increases levels of vitamin D in the body -- may decrease the risk of advanced breast cancer.

19 Oct 2007

Early intervention dramatically improves outcomes for new dialysis patients

A program of education, close medical follow-up, and self-empowerment for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) newly starting dialysis, reduces complications and improves outcomes - including significant reductions in mortality and hospitalization rates, reports a study in the November Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

19 Oct 2007

19,000 Americans died in 2005 from MRSA

A new study that estimates nearly 19,000 Americans died in 2005 from a virulent, antibiotic-resistant infection acquired mostly in the hospital underscores the need for Congress to require public reporting of patient infection rates, according to Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports.

19 Oct 2007

Heart attacks and suicide higher in those who have surgery for obesity

New research has revealed that deaths due to suicide and coronary heart disease are higher among people who have undergone bariatric surgery for obesity.

19 Oct 2007

Pine bark extract boosts nitric oxide production

A study to be published in the October edition of Hypertension Research reveals Pycnogenol, (pic-noj-en-all), an antioxidant plant extract from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, helps individuals by enhancing healthy nitric oxide (NO) production which leads to an increase in blood flow and oxygen supply to muscles.

18 Oct 2007

Phase II map of human genetic variation

The International HapMap Consortium today published analyses of its second-generation map of human genetic variation, which contains three times more markers than the initial version unveiled in 2005.

18 Oct 2007