Feature Channels: Health Food

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Breast milk is known to provide the best source of nutrition for newborns and infants, and for premature babies, it can be lifesaving. Yet much about the composition of human milk and what makes it so beneficial is still a mystery. To help scientists bridge this knowledge gap, the Switzerland-based Family Larsson-Rosenquist Foundation has made a $10.5 million gift to the University of California San Diego, home to one of the world’s only centers dedicated to human milk research.

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Researchers from the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) and the University of Adelaide have found a way to provide mothers and young children in Cambodia with better nutrition through an unlikely source – fish sauce.

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A new comprehensive review examines the potential health benefits of resistant starch, a form of starch that is not digested in the small intestine and is therefore considered a type of dietary fibre.

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A new study shows that older people who followed a Mediterranean diet retained more brain volume over a three-year period than those who did not follow the diet as closely. The study is published in the January 4, 2017, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. But contrary to earlier studies, eating more fish and less meat was not related to changes in the brain.

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The Mayo Clinic Diet has been named No. 1 in the Best Commercial Diet category in U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 Best Diets rankings. The Mayo approach offers a weight-loss and lifestyle program based on years of research and clinical experience.

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A new study by researchers from the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) shows that a modest 4 milligrams of extra zinc a day in the diet can have a profound, positive impact on cellular health that helps fight infections and diseases. This amount of zinc is equivalent to what biofortified crops like zinc rice and zinc wheat can add to the diet of vulnerable, nutrient deficient populations.

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Experimenting on mice with a genetic change similar to that found in people with a rare inherited disease called Kabuki syndrome, Johns Hopkins scientists report that a very low-carbohydrate diet can “open up” DNA and improve mental function.

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Consumers believe healthy food must be more expensive than cheap eats and that higher-priced food is healthier – even when there is no supporting evidence, according to new research.

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Sometimes treating a chronic disease can be as simple as adding fruits and vegetables to the diet, at least that’s what researchers at the Texas A&M College of Medicine have found.

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The Academy for Eating Disorders Advocates for Early Intervention and Specialized Care for Eating Disorders Treatment in Response to Morristown, NJ Ruling

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Mayo Clinic will publish the second edition of The Mayo Clinic Diet with all-new menu plans and recipes on Jan. 1. The book offers effective methods to adopt simple, enjoyable, practical, safe and healthy behaviors to lose unwanted pounds and, most importantly — keep them off for good.

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Diet composition around the time of pregnancy may influence whether offspring become obese, according to a new study using animal models at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI).

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College students gained an average of 10 pounds over the course of their college years, a study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found, and number of students who were overweight or obese increased 78 percent. The extra weight translates to a variety of increased health risks, the study says.

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Want to eat healthy and save money this holiday season? Including fresh, seasonal produce in your family meals and party platters may be a good place to start.

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• A healthy diet high in fruits, vegetables, fish, legumes, cereals, whole grains, and fiber, and low in red meat, salt, and refined sugars was linked with a reduced risk of early death in an analysis of 7 studies

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a name for areas in which people live far from a supermarket or large grocery store that sells nutritious foods and where much of the population lacks easy access to transportation: food deserts.

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Precisely meeting a pregnant sow’s protein needs, specifically amino acid requirements, will improve the health of the sow and piglet—and help protect the environment by utilizing resources wisely.

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If your New Year's resolution is to get healthier and to lead a more satisfying life, consider becoming a volunteer. A recent study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that volunteering may have positive health benefits for older adults. It’s probably true that volunteering provides value for people of all ages.

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University of Alabama researchers are recruiting for a 10-week study to see how watermelon impacts blood vessel function.

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With our planet’s population estimated to reach more than 9 billion by 2050, the world faces many pressing food demands. In order to help food scientists and technologists meet these challenges, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) and the Canadian Institute of Food Science and Technology (CIFST) are excited to announce a new joint-membership program.

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In mouse experiments, researchers have shown how aging and excess dietary fat create signals that lead to heart failure after a heart attack. Clarifying the mechanism of this harmful pathway is important because nearly 5 million people in the United States suffer heart failure as an age-related disease following heart attacks.

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An epidemiological analysis of data from 1,685 adult Americans finds that regular consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, but not diet soda, is associated with increased risk of prediabetes and increased insulin resistance.

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The latest research and features on obesity in the Obesity News Source.

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A newly released basic science study of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) suggests that a functioning circadian clock, or sleeping at night and being awake during the day, can help patients achieve a higher amount of weight loss following the surgery. The study conducted in a mouse model is one of the first to shed light on how researchers and clinicians might continue to improve the outcomes following RYGB by correcting disruptions to the circadian clock.

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The first human test of early time-restricted feeding found that this meal-timing strategy strategy reduced swings in hunger and altered fat and carb burning patterns, which may help with losing weight. In early time-restricted feeding (eTRF), people eat their last meal by the mid-afternoon and don’t eat again until breakfast the next morning.

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"Coffee" was the most tweeted food in the continental U.S. between mid-2014 to mid-2015 followed by "beer" then "pizza". Besides hinting at which foods are popular, scientists at the University of Utah are finding that tweets reveal something about our health. Communities that tweeted more often about physical activities, or expressed positive sentiments about healthy foods, had better overall health.

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In a series of studies led by Assistant Professor Anutosh Chakraborty of The Scripps Research Institute Florida campus, scientists have identified a key protein that promotes fat accumulation in animal models by slowing the breakdown and expenditure of fat and encouraging weight gain.

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After analyzing 10 years of medical tests on more than 2,700 people in a federally funded heart disease study, researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine and elsewhere conclude that taking calcium in the form of supplements may raise the risk of plaque buildup in arteries and heart damage, although a diet high in calcium-rich foods appears be protective.

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A new systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials has concluded that eating oat fibre can reduce all three markers.

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International Year of Pulses highlights role of sustainable crops, nutritious foods

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Ancient grains have become staples in many diets due to their health benefits and exotic appeal. In fact, the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend daily intake of whole grains to be at least half of total grain consumption. IFT Past President Mary Ellen Camire, PhD, CFS, discussed various ancient grains and their dietary benefits with IFT Food Facts to create this video.

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Children and teenagers who are obese have different microorganisms living in the digestive tract than their lean counterparts, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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Healthy Eating standards represent a means of increasing fruit, vegetable, whole grain, and water intake among adolescents by providing healthy snacks in conjunction with education on healthy eating. For these reasons, the YMCA of the US adopted these standards for all its after-school programs in November of 2011. However, a study of YMCAs in South Carolina found that none of the programs were meeting every aspect of the Healthy Eating standards and many were deficient in several areas.

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For many people, there's nothing more satisfying than a hot, spicy meal. But some research has suggested that capsaicin, the compound that gives chili peppers their kick, might cause cancer. Now researchers show in mouse studies that the pungent compound in ginger, 6-ginergol, could counteract capsaicin's potentially harmful effects. In combination with the capsaicin, 6-gingerol could lower the risk of cancer, they say. The study appears in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

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A simple adjustment to patients’ therapeutic regimen may improve the effectiveness of the standard epigenetic treatment for myeloid dysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

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New research led by scientists from King's College London and the University of Bristol has found that a high-fat, high-sugar diet during pregnancy may be linked to symptoms of ADHD in children who show conduct problems early in life.

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A recent study by researchers at the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center took them to a not-so-likely destination: local farmers markets. They went in search of fresh ginger root.

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Scientists have discovered a new way to attack Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. The team, from Imperial College London, have revealed how the bacteria regulates its salt levels.

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People receiving personalised nutrition advice develop healthier eating habits including consuming less red meat and reducing their salt intake, a study has found.

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Food advertising is a multi-billion dollar industry, with approximately $1.8 billion annually aimed at children and adolescents, who view between 1,000 and 2,000 ads per year. Some studies have shown that there is a relationship between receptivity to food commercials and the amount and type of food consumed. In a new study scheduled for publication in The Journal of Pediatrics, researchers studied the brain activity of children after watching food commercials and found that the commercials influence children's food choices and brain activity.

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Muscadine grapes are known for their health benefits and other nutritive values – even for potential preventive measures against cancer and cardiovascular diseases. The fruits are rich in antioxidants such as a ellagic acid and resveratrol. The new UF/IFAS study examined those benefits in 58 of the approximately 100 muscadine grape varieties.

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Eating a Mediterranean diet can slow down cognitive decline.

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Research from a University of North Texas historian supports the idea that the nation and region of origin of your ancestors contributes to your risk of developing, or not developing, a growing list of medical conditions.

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A study at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health showed that obesity was more prevalent in patients with a history of cancer than in the general population, and survivors of colorectal and breast cancers were particularly affected. The study is among the first to compare rates of obesity among U.S. cancer survivors and adults without a history of cancer. Findings are published online in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

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About 7 percent of all Danish children are born prematurely. This is of significant im-portance not only to the child's development, but it also affects the mother's body that - unexpectedly - has to produce the necessary nutrition for the newborn baby.

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IFT16: Where Science Feeds Innovation hosted by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) held at McCormick Place South in Chicago highlighted the hottest food trends, the latest food products, and the most important developments in the science of food. More than 23,500 people attended the event held July 16-19 to attend scientific sessions, network with colleagues, and visit the sold-out expo floor.