Scientists have discovered a protein that controls the amount of
fat stored in the body, offering potential new clues for obesity
treatments - welcome news as the world's health leaders agree to do
more to tackle the growing...
The European Commission last week launched a new research network
which it hopes will become the world's leading resource on prion
diseases such as BSE - evidence that while 'mad cow' fears might
have diminished, the...
Small daily doses of flavonoid-rich dark chocolate eaten over a
two-week period significantly improved blood vessel function,
report US researchers this week, without increasing blood
cholesterol levels.
Parents concerned that additives in the diets of their young
children may be having an adverse effect on behavioural patterns
may be right - although clinical studies failed to support their
concerns, say researchers about to embark...
Probiotic bacteria appear to tackle the HIV virus and may even stop
it from being transferred from a mother to her children, said
researchers at the American Society for Microbiology general
meeting this week.
Scientists have discovered a possible mechanism for the anti-cancer
activity of resveratrol, the compound found in red wine and thought
to be responsible for the drink's widely reported health benefits,
writes Wai Lang Chu.
Pre-germinated brown rice, high in levels of the nutrient GABA,
significantly improved levels of spatial learning in mice, report
researchers from the Japanese cosmetics and supplements maker
FANCL, writes Dominique Patton.
Numerous studies of the properties of green tea have shown that the
beverage can stimulate the human immune system to fight against a
variety of diseases, but new research presented this week suggests
that its cousin, white tea, may...
Pregnant women with asthma who eat oily fish, such as salmon or
trout, may help protect their children against developing asthma,
according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference in
Orlando...
The world's health ministers gave their support on Saturday to a
new policy produced by the World Health Organisation that is
designed to tackle the world's growing problem of obesity and
diet-related disease, said to account...
Concerns that uncooked meats and meat products on sale in the UK
could contain high levels of the potentially harmful chemical
1,3-dichloropropanol (1,3-DCP) have proven unfounded following an
investigation by the government-funded...
A compound in cilantro could prove to be a safe, natural means of
fighting foodborne disease such as Salmonella, according to a joint
study by US and Mexican researchers.
Vaccines to combat a number of foodborne pathogens such as Listeria
could be commercially available in the near future, a breakthrough
which would "greatly enhance human health and wellbeing
worldwide," according to US researchers.
Green tea may help to lower the prevalence of oesophageal
adenocarcinoma, one of the fastest growing cancers in western
countries, said researchers speaking at a meeting on digestive
disease in the US last week.
Nutritionists and health food campaigners have been saying it for
years, but now a new study from the US Department of Agriculture
has confirmed it: people who eat fast food have a greater calorie
intake than those who do not, and...
A new study conducted by the FDA says that acrylamide found in
fried and baked goods is unlikely to cause reproduction problems if
the general public consume it as part of the average daily diet -
but research is ongoing for its carcinogenic...
Even children who eat two or fewer servings of fruit each week are
less likely to experience recurrent abdominal pain (RAP), a common
condition in children and adolescents that can interfere with
school activities, said researchers...
Biotechnology could help farmers in developing countries
significantly improve their fortunes, but only a few are currently
able to benefit as many basic food crops are ignored by biotech
scientists, according to a report from the...
Folic acid - the B vitamin found commonly in supplements and
increasingly in a wide range of bread products - is already known
to prevent severe birth defects and to lower risk of death from
heart disease. But it could also help to...
At least 155 million school-age children worldwide are overweight
or obese, a growing problem which needs to be tackled now if more
serious ailments such as type 2 diabetes or heart disease are to be
avoided, according to the International...
Non-alcoholic beer may impart the same cardiovascular benefits as
its traditional counterpart but without the potential negative
impact of excessive consumption, according to new research from
Germany.
Food makers are criticised again for the high salt content in food
products as campaign group CASH (Consensus Action on Salt and
Health) publishes new survey saying sandwiches on sale at retail
outlets are so salty they should carry...
A substance found in soybeans may reduce the risk of colon cancer,
the third most common form of cancer in the world. Soy
glucosylceramide has been found to be effective in reducing the
formation and growth of tumour cells in the...
In what could be seen as a blow to the fast-growing market for soy
products, a new study from the US suggests that processing soy for
use in supplements and food products could seriously reduce its
cancer-fighting ability.
A food product on the shelf must satisfy a range of senses to earn
consumer appeal. But US scientists claim that little understood
contextual cues - food display, colours - can lead to people eating
much more than they need.
The UK's food watchdog will inject millions of pounds into a new
landmark study that aims to shed light on specific foods that could
reduce heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. The findings could pave
the way for a raft of new...
A highly complex web of signals in the brain that are vulnerable to
a single error could explain why some overweight people cannot shed
the kilos through simple diet and exercise. This is what UK
scientists said as they unveiled brand...
Fish oil is perhaps the most widely used source of omega-3 fatty
acids but it is by no means the only source. Firms providing
alternative sources to fish oil omega-3 need must boost consumer
awareness to up sales as new research from...
People who shift their caffeine 'buzz' from a morning dose to small
amounts consumed throughout the day could avoid falling asleep, may
perform well on cognitive tests, and sleep soundly at night.
The benefits of including fruit in a daily dietary regime have been
given greater support with US researchers suggesting that natural
compounds found in fresh Bing cherries could help people who suffer
from gout or other forms of...
Breakfast cereals fortified with folic acid and other B vitamins
could help consumers protect against heart disease by lowering
levels of homocysteine, suggests new research. The amino acid
homocysteine is increasingly accepted as...
The US food watchdog had made steps to find out more about the
potential carcinogen furan after a new technology detected very low
levels of furan in a wider range of foods larger than previously
thought.
Teenagers who suffered iron deficiency as infants are likely to
score lower on cognitive and motor tests, even if that iron
deficiency was identified and treated in infancy, a new study
shows.
With global corn stocks at 20 year lows and prices slated to
continue their upward rise in 2004 the prospect of a new technology
that doubles the protein and oil content of corn while cutting the
carbohydrate levels should be well...
New research from the UK suggests an immune system malfunction
could play a profound role in the onset of food allergies. As the
European food industry gets to grips with imminent rules on the
labelling of allergens, the UK findings...
Burcon NutraScience, the Canada-based producer of rapeseed protein
products, has contracted Germany's Fraunhofer Institute to carry
out tests on its Supertein and Puratein products with a view to
finding new added-value opportunities...
Ongoing innovation from ingredients and additives firms operating
in the competitive flavours domain brings food developers new
opportunities to improve the final product. ICI flavour subsidiary
Quest International, streamlined this...
Human milk has long been thought to have an effect on reducing the
likelihood of obesity among adults, but scientists have struggled
to say exactly why this is the case - until now.
Sending a ripple of fear through the food industry, in 2002 the
Swedish Food Administration found high levels of the cancer-causing
compound acrylamide in carbohydrate-rich foods heated to high
temperatures. As global efforts in food...
Pregnant women watching their caffeine limits need to be aware of
the wide range of caffeine levels their cup can contain, warns the
UK Food Standards Agency.
Taking supplements of soy isoflavones, thought to help women fight
menopause symptoms and offer other health benefits, may not be
equally beneficial for men, suggests new animal research, writes
Dominique Patton.
Omega-3 fatty acids have been associated with numerous health
benefits, from brain development and preventing memory loss to
suppressing tumours and cutting heart disease. But according to new
findings in the US, one particular fatty...
In time for EU enlargement on 1 May and in light of the tough new
GMO rules enforced in mid-April, twenty-four national enforcement
laboratories from the accession countries last week became part of
the European Network of Genetically...
As society ponders the reasons for the rising tide of obesity in
children, researchers in the US suggest that the 'striking
alterations' in children's meal patterns over the past 20 years may
not be related to the current...
The dairy industry has been eagerly promoting trials showing that
the calcium in milk products can prevent obesity but, writes
Dominique Patton, several gaps in the evidence mean that
dietary guidelines based on this effect are a...
Pushing the boundaries of food science to its actual physical
limits, a new experiment targetting high pressure preservation
techniques on Mediterranean foodstuffs saw cheese, sun-dried
tomatoes and Italian bread rocketing far into...
Antioxidant properties of carotenoids are thought to be at least
partly responsible for the protective effects of fruits and
vegetables against colon cancer. But there is little known about
the antioxidant impact of carotenoid-rich...
