Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Latest Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Eggs are a high in lutein, a carotenoid important for eye and skin health

The study published in the August 2004 issue of the Journal of Nutrition compared the bioavailability of lutein from various sources, in order to determine how it can impact dietary recommendations. Highly bioavailable forms of nutrients are those that the body can most easily absorb and utilize.

26 Aug 2004

$700,000 to help prevent or control diabetes among New Yorkers

Governor George E. Pataki has announced that 14 community-based organizations in New York State have been awarded grants totaling $700,000 to help prevent or control diabetes among New Yorkers.

25 Aug 2004

Study emphasizes the importance of monitoring blood pressure and dyslipidemia in patient's with metabolic syndrome

Having three or more traits of the metabolic syndrome significantly increases the risk of dying from coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease or any other cause, according to a study in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

25 Aug 2004

High blood pressure increased 30 percent over the last decade in the U.S.

The study found that at least 65 million Americans have hypertension, defined as blood pressure of 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or higher, using blood-pressure lowering medications, or having been told at least twice by a physician or other health professional that they had high blood pressure (medical history). By that definition, almost a third of U.S. adults have hypertension.

25 Aug 2004

Early cholesterol-lowering drug therapy reduces artery-clogging plaque

Early cholesterol-lowering drug therapy after hospitalization for acute coronary syndrome appears to reduce artery-clogging plaque, according to a study reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

25 Aug 2004

Sugar-sweetened beverages increase women's risk of developing type 2 diabetes

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital have found that women who increased their intake or consumed higher amounts of sugar-sweetened beverages had a greater magnitude of weight gain and a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to women who consumed fewer sugar-sweetened drinks.

25 Aug 2004

Children who take steroid drugs for nephrotic syndrome do not suffer bone loss

Childhood nephrotic syndrome, which affects 3 out of 100,000 children, is the most common chronic kidney disease in children. Although it does not impair kidney function, it weakens the body's ability to remove water and salt from the blood, and causes swelling in the belly, legs, and around the eyes.

25 Aug 2004

Space theme tackles obesity and cholesterol levels in youngsters

A supplement entitled “Food and Fitness,” one of three educational guides for teachers produced by Baylor College of Medicine for the NSBRI, teaches middle school students about the importance of nutrition and exercise using intergalactic themes.

23 Aug 2004

Researchers have produced a marathon mouse that can run twice as far as normal mice

By enhancing the function of a single protein, Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers have produced a “marathon mouse” with altered muscle composition and enough physical endurance to run twice as far as normal mice.

23 Aug 2004

Striking increase in high blood pressure in the U.S.

A new analysis of the prevalence of high blood pressure in the US shows a striking increase over the last 10 years in the number of adults with this condition.

23 Aug 2004

Cholesterol guidelines advise more intensive treatment

Cardiologists at Temple University Hospital are working with area primary care physicians to help educate patients who are at moderate-to- high risk for heart attack about new guidelines for lowering cholesterol.

23 Aug 2004

People with type 2 diabetes could benefit from atorvastatin

Results of a randomised trial in this week’s issue of THE LANCET suggest that people with type 2 diabetes could benefit from cholesterol-lowering therapy with statins to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, even when they do not have high cholesterol concentrations.

20 Aug 2004

Fruit and vegetables eaten before pregnancy lowers risk of leukemia

A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, suggests that women who eat more vegetables, fruit and foods containing protein before pregnancy may have a lower risk of having a child who develops leukemia, the most common childhood cancer in the United States.

20 Aug 2004

Antibodies produced by shark immune systems could be used to detect human pathogens

A recent discovery shows that antibodies produced by shark immune systems could be used to detect a range of human pathogens some of which have the potential to be used as biological warfare agents.

20 Aug 2004

Large percentage of child deaths related to malaria are attributable to undernutrition and deficiencies

A large percentage of child deaths related to malaria are attributable to undernutrition and deficiencies of vitamin A, zinc, iron and folate, according to a new report by researchers with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

20 Aug 2004

Doctors say school lunches still failing to make the grade

With schools starting up all over the country, kids have one more thing besides pop quizzes and exams to worry about this fall, school lunches.

18 Aug 2004

Vitamin E has potential benefit in fighting colds in the elderly

Vitamin E supplementation has potential benefit in fighting upper respiratory tract infections such as colds in the elderly, says a study published in the Aug. 18 issue of JAMA.

18 Aug 2004

Computed tomography may improve screening of latent atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is the progressive narrowing and hardening of the arteries over time, known to occur to some degree with aging; but other risk factors (such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes and family history for atherosclerotic disease) that accelerate this process have been identified.

18 Aug 2004

Exposure to natural and man-made substances in the environment accounts for at least two-thirds of all the cases of cancer in the U.S.

These environmental factors include lifestyle choices like cigarette smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, poor diet, lack of exercise and excessive sunlight exposure. Other factors include exposure to certain medical drugs, hormones, radiation, viruses, bacteria, and chemicals that may be present in the air, water, food and workplace.

18 Aug 2004

80% of cancer patients use some form of complementary or alternative therapies

Plug the terms "alternative" and "cancer" into Google and the Internet search engine returns a list of 3.27 million - yes, million - sites with information both credible and questionable about nontraditional treatments for cancer. What's a cancer patient to make of such a vast array of options?

18 Aug 2004