Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Latest Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Vitamin D, "the heart tranquilizer"

Strong bones, a healthy immune system, protection against some types of cancer: Recent studies suggest there's yet another item for the expanding list of vitamin D benefits. Vitamin D, "the sunshine vitamin," keeps the heart, the body's long-distance runner, fit for life's demands.

11 Jun 2008

The 'Big Apple' - not the place to be sassy and single!

According to official statistics, living in New York City is risky in more ways than one.

11 Jun 2008

Addicted cells provide early cancer diagnosis

Scientists at the Institute of Food Research have detected subtle changes that may make the bowel more vulnerable to the development of tumours.

10 Jun 2008

Common cause of loss of sight may be avoided by diet rich in omega-3

New research suggests that one of the most common causes of vision loss could be avoided by eating food rich in omega-3 fatty acids.

10 Jun 2008

Low levels of vitamin D in men linked to heart attack

Low levels of vitamin D appear to be associated with higher risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) in men, according to a report in the June 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

9 Jun 2008

Calls for parents of vegan girl with severe rickets to face court

The parents of a young British girl brought up on a strict vegan diet could face court after the child was admitted to hospital with a degenerative bone condition.

9 Jun 2008

Women who gain excessive weight during pregnancy more likely to have overweight children

Children of mothers who gain more than the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy are more likely to be overweight at age seven, say researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, in a study published today in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Children of mothers who are obese prior to pregnancy and gain excessive weight are at the greatest risk for overweight.

9 Jun 2008

Decisions best made on a full stomach

British researchers say decisions are best made on a full stomach. The scientists say a full stomach minimises hasty decisions and prevents impulsive actions.

8 Jun 2008

Sun and vitamin D levels may play a strong role in risk of type 1 diabetes in children

In this new study, the researchers found that populations living at or near the equator, where there is abundant sunshine (and ultraviolet B irradiance) have low incidence rates of type 1 diabetes. Conversely, populations at higher latitudes, where available sunlight is scarcer, have higher incidence rates.

5 Jun 2008

Prostate Cancer Foundation 'beefs up' cancer research

The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) has committed more than $19 million in new research funding for scientific investigations focused on discovering new treatments for recurrent prostate cancer. A total of eight programs representing 18 leading research institutions and 36 researchers were selected as part of the foundation's 2008 Challenge Awards. The funded programs will receive the first of three annual payments, ranging between $500,000 and $1.0 million per program, this week.

4 Jun 2008

Long-term pesticide exposure may increase diabetes risk

Licensed pesticide applicators who used chlorinated pesticides on more than 100 days in their lifetime were at greater risk of diabetes, according to researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The associations between specific pesticides and incident diabetes ranged from a 20 percent to a 200 percent increase in risk, said the scientists with the NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

4 Jun 2008

Compound in red wine could protect the heart from ageing

Researchers in the United States say a natural compound found in red wine may protect the heart against the effects of the ageing process.

4 Jun 2008

U.S. consumer group calls for ban on food colourings

A consumer advocacy group in the United States has called for a ban on artificial colourings in food.

4 Jun 2008

New molecular mechanism for colorectal cancer

Scientists in Portugal just found a new molecular mechanism behind colorectal cancer in which a mutated and a normal, but over-expressed, gene cooperate and are both needed to create the disease.

4 Jun 2008

More evidence red wine keep hearts young

How, scientists wonder, do the French get away with a clean bill of heart health despite a diet loaded with saturated fats?

3 Jun 2008

How the cholesterol-lowering drug ezetimibe (Zetia) works

A new study in the June issue of Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press publication, sheds light on the action of the drug ezetimibe (trade name Zetia), which is used to treat high cholesterol. Ezetimibe is unique among cholesterol-lowering drugs in that it works by cutting the amount of cholesterol taken in from the diet rather than by blocking cholesterol's manufacture in the body.

3 Jun 2008