Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Latest Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Further European investment in genomics

The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) has announced continued funding, from 2007 to 2012, for its three research centres, CESAGen, EGENIS and INNOGEN, that, along with the ESRC Genomics Policy and Research Forum, make up the ESRC Genomics Network.

23 Oct 2006

Evolutionary connection between food supply and brain size

In a study of orangutans living on the Indonesian islands of Borneo and Sumatra, scientists from Duke University and the University of Zurich have found what they say is the first demonstration in primates of an evolutionary connection between available food supplies and brain size.

23 Oct 2006

Common gene variant increases risk of developing diabetes

Carrying two copies of a common variant of a particular gene doubles your chances of developing diabetes and puts you in a similar risk category to being clinically obese, according to a collaborative study led by UCL (University College London) researchers.

23 Oct 2006

Scientists identify gene called HTRA1 that contributes to a major risk of Age Related Macular Degeneration

Researchers at the John A. Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah have identified a gene called HTRA1 that contributes to a major risk of Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), the most common cause of irreversible vision loss in the developed world.

20 Oct 2006

Eating lots of bread associated with increased risk of renal cell carcinoma

A case-control study of more than 2300 Italians has found a significant association between high bread consumption and renal cell carcinoma. Eating a lot of pasta and rice may also raise the risk, while eating many vegetables may lower the risk.

20 Oct 2006

$74 million allocated to study environmental causes of disease

As part of the new Exposure Biology Program, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, a component of the National Institutes of Health, today announced $74 million in grant opportunities for the development of new technologies that will improve the measurement of environmental exposures that contribute to human disease.

19 Oct 2006

African Union adopts reproductive health rights policy

African Union health ministers meeting in Maputo, Mozambique, last week adopted a policy framework to address sexual and reproductive health and rights but did not agree on how to address the issue of unsafe abortions, resolving to allow each member state to handle the issue separately, Lilongwe's Chronicle/AllAfrica.com reports.

19 Oct 2006

Comprehensive review backs health benefits of eating fish

There is ample research advocating the nutritional benefits of eating fish and shellfish because fish is high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids.

18 Oct 2006

Do the risks of eating fish outweigh the benefits? Yes or No

Fish is high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids. But concerns have been raised in recent years about chemicals found in fish from environmental pollution, including mercury, PCBs and dioxins. That has led to confusion among the public--do the risks of eating fish outweigh the benefits?

17 Oct 2006

Tuberculosis fourfold the risk for Celiac sufferers

Swedish researchers are suggesting that people with celiac disease, also known as gluten intolerance, have an increased risk of developing tuberculosis (TB).

17 Oct 2006

New diabetes drug Januvia works without causing weight gain

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. has granted approval for a new drug to treat adults with type 2 diabetes.

17 Oct 2006

FDA approves Januvia for diabetes

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced today the approval of Januvia (sitagliptin phosphate) Tablets, the first diabetes treatment approved in a new class of drugs known as DDP-4 inhibitors that enhances the body's own ability to lower elevated blood sugar.

17 Oct 2006

New test on hair can reveal eating disorders

All too often women with eating disorders cannot recognise they have a problem, or go to great lengths to disguise the problem from others.

17 Oct 2006

Walnuts better for the heart than olive oil

According to Spanish researchers walnuts might be even better for the arteries than olive oil.

10 Oct 2006

Mediterranean diet shown to protect against Alzheimer's

A new study has added to the growing body of research which suggests that eating a Mediterranean diet can help to prevent Alzheimer's disease.

10 Oct 2006

Drinking Cola bad for women's bones

If the latest research is to be believed women who drink cola on a regular basis are putting themselves at an increased risk of developing osteoporosis.

9 Oct 2006

Bill clinches deal with snack food companies

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton has convinced some companies to improve the quality of food available in schools in the U.S. and to make school snacks healthier.

8 Oct 2006

Breast feeding confers many benefits but making a child smarter is not one of them

New research by Scottish scientists has found that whether a child is breastfed or not has no bearing on their intelligence.

4 Oct 2006

One-third of U.S. kids unfit

Researchers in the U.S. report that as many as one-third of American children are physically unfit but boys are in better shape than girls.

3 Oct 2006

Super chow, laced with semi-synthetic vitamin E derivative, inhibited spread of cancer in mice

A chemically altered form of vitamin E mixed into mouse chow dramatically reduced spread of aggressive mammary cancer in mice, suggesting that the compound in pill form could be used to treat human metastatic cancer, according to a report in the October 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research.

2 Oct 2006