FDA Warns Food Manufacturers Over Misleading Labels

March 4, 2010

ABC News

By Lee Ferran

The countdown is on for 17 food manufacturers to correct labels on popular food products that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says misrepresents the products’ health benefits — or else.

The FDA said Wednesday that its commissioner, Dr. Margaret Hamburg, had sent letters to each company in question Feb. 22, along with an open letter to the food manufacturing industry demanding they take action against “false or misleading” labels.

Among the complaints is that “misleading ‘healthy’ claims continue to appear on foods that do not meet the long- and well-established definition for use of that term,” Hamburg said in the letter.

If companies such as Nestle and Beech-Nut do not comply, the FDA warned, the products could be removed from the shelves.

“FDA is notifying a number of manufacturers that their labels are in violation of the law and subject to legal proceedings to remove misbranded products from the marketplace,” Hamburg said in the letter, which is posted on the FDA Web site.

Bruce Silverglade of the Center for Science in the Public Interest told “Good Morning America, “We hope this is the start of a battle that will lead to a war that will end deceptive food labeling.”

Hamburg, citing the desire of industry leaders to provide safe, healthy products, said in the letter that the FDA’s measure is an attempt to clarify “what is expected of them.”

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Healty Piscachios Cut Cancer Risk

December 14, 2009

Natural News

By S. L. Baker

Researchers have reported over the past year that nuts offer a wide range of health benefits — from helping fight the pre-diabetic condition known as metabolic syndrome (http://www.naturalnews.com/025098_n…) to preventing age-related blindness (http://www.naturalnews.com/026369_o…) and lowering breast cancer risk (http://www.naturalnews.com/026115_w…). Now there’s even more good news about nuts. According to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research Conference held in Houston recently, eating a handful of pistachios daily may protect you from lung cancer.

“It is known that vitamin E provides a degree of protection against certain forms of cancer. Higher intakes of gamma-tocopherol, which is a form of vitamin E, may reduce the risk of lung cancer,” Ladia M. Hernandez, a PhD candidate at Texas Women’s University and a senior research dietitian in the Department of Epidemiology at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, said in a statement to the press. “Pistachios are a good source of gamma-tocopherol. Eating them increases intake of gamma-tocopherol so pistachios may help to decrease lung cancer risk.”

Pistachios have already been shown in previous studies to be a heart-healthy food. The nuts have a cholesterol-lowering effect and are loaded with immune system boosting antioxidants. Hernandez and her research team conducted a six-week, controlled clinical trial to investigate whether the consumption of pistachios would increase levels of gamma-tocopherol in the body.

Their study, which was at conducted at Texas Woman’s University in Houston, involved 36 healthy research subjects. The participants were randomized into a control group and an intervention group. For two weeks, both groups ate their normal diets so the scientists could take baseline measurements. Then for four weeks the control group continued on their regular diet while the other study participants added 68 grams (about 2 ounces or 117 kernels) of pistachios to their diets each day.

By weeks three and four, the scientists found that the research subjects eating pistachios had significantly higher serum gamma-tocopherol levels, compared to their baseline measurements and the vitamin E levels measured in the control group not eating the nuts. This substantially increased amount of gamma-tocopherol in the body of pistachio eaters could help lower the risk of not only lung cancer but other malignancies, as well. “Because epidemiologic studies suggest gamma-tocopherol is protective against prostate cancer, pistachio intake may help,” Hernandez said.

But what about the added calories? Hernandez explained the amount of pistachios needed to lower the risk of cancer isn’t enough to pack on extra pounds. “Pistachios are one of those ‘good-for-you’ nuts, and two ounces per day could be incorporated into dietary strategies designed to reduce the risk of lung cancer without significant changes in body mass index,” she stated.

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FDA Takes Aim at Misleading Food Labels

October 21, 2009

Abc News

By Lisa Stark and Huma Khan

It’s not unusual for a box of cereal to bear labels touting numerous health benefits. Pick up a box of Cocoa Puffs, and General Mills says you’ve made a healthy choice. Kellogg’s Froot Loops also qualifies for a Smart Choices label.

But the ubiquitous label — a white sticker with a green check mark — is increasingly appearing on products that critics say are not so nutritionally smart.

Smart Choices is one of the many programs developed by grocery stores, scientists, health organizations and manufacturers themselves to steer health-conscious shoppers to supposedly nutritional products. But the government is stepping in and cracking down, saying the different systems are too confusing.

The Food and Drug Administration says it will analyze labels to make sure they are not misleading and is hoping to develop a nutritional gold standard for products that manufacturers want to label as healthy.

That may not be such a bad move, some experts say.

“When you have 40 percent sugar, can you imagine that? Half the box with grain and half of the box with sugar, that’s not such a smart choice,” Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said of Froot Loops.

When contacted by ABC News, Kellogg’s deferred to a statement by the Smart Choices Program defending the labeling.

The program “was developed during an open and lengthy collaborative process that included some of the most experienced and accomplished professionals in nutrition science,” Mike Hughes, chairman of the Smart Choices Program, said in the statement, adding that it “complies with all U.S. laws and regulations.”

Still, Jacobson’s Washington, D.C.-based consumer advocacy group wants the FDA to implement a national standard for labeling on the front of packages and even urged lawmakers on Capitol Hill to provide funding to research a system.

It’s not just cereals that mislead consumers, Jacobson said. He also pointed to Kraft’s Strawberry Bagelful, which he said is stuffed with cream cheese and strawberry puree sweetened with sugar and colored with red dye. It also has a Smart Choices label.

“You have these conflicting systems and some of them are flawed; that not so healthy foods get the symbol,” he said.

It is a system that concerns the FDA, too, and the agency is warning food companies that it will analyze labels to make sure they are not misdirecting consumers.

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Artichokes Contain Amazing Power

September 12, 2009

Natural News

By Sheryl Walters

Artichokes, which can be eaten or taken as artichoke leaf extract, have been shown to improve various digestive health disorders. They significantly lower blood cholesterol levels, prevent heart disease and atherosclerosis, enhance detoxification reactions, as well as protect the liver from damage.

History
The artichoke is a thistle-like plant native to the regions of southern Europe, North Africa and the Canary Islands. The most powerful part of the plant medicinally is its leaves.

The artichoke is one of the oldest medicinal plants dating back to 4th century B.C. Ancient Greeks and Romans used the artichoke for digestive problems. In the 16th century, artichokes were documented as a treatment for liver problems and jaundice. It was not until the 20th century that it became widely popular as a delicious food and a useful medicine.

Health Benefits

Clinical and experimental trials have shown that eating artichokes may be useful in treating chronic digestive complaints including irritable stomach, nervous gastropathy, flatulence, and irritable bowel.

They are useful in treating specific liver/gallbladder conditions with elevated blood fat values by promoting bile flow in the body, increasing fat digestion and protecting the intestinal mucosa. Bile acids stimulate intestinal peristalsis resulting in better digestion. Bile moves toxins that are ingested through food, water and the air from the liver on to the intestine for further elimination, making it a powerful detoxer.

Artichokes have been proven through clinical studies to be a safe, non-toxic, natural way to prevent and treat high cholesterol. They increase the breakdown of cholesterol to bile salts, thus increasing bile production and flow, and regulate the internal production of cholesterol in the liver.

Artichokes have been shown to lower LDL (bad cholesterol) and increase HDL (good cholesterol). One study showed a decrease in total cholesterol of 18.5 and LDL cholesterol by 23. This amazing plant had actually gained widespread popularity in the 1950`s and 60`s before statin drugs came along. They contain high amounts of luteolin, which is known to play a role in it cholesterol lowering abilities.

Artichokes are packed with antioxidants, making them incredible defenders against cancer, aging, heart disease, and illness. They boost the immune system and lower cholesterol.

Artichokes are packed with vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients that increase health and wellbeing. These include:

Quercetin
An anti-carcinogen flavonoid that works as an antioxidant to protect against cancer and heart disease.

Rutin
A flavonoid which promotes cardiovascular health, helps prevent cell proliferation associated with cancer, and has anti-inflammatory and anti-allergenic properties.

Anthocyanins
Color pigments in Artichokes that are powerful antioxidants. They are associated with a lower risk of certain cancers, urinary tract health, memory function and healthy aging.

Gallic Acid
A potent antioxidant also found in red wine and black tea. It has been shown to inhibit cell proliferation in prostate cancer cells.

Luteolin and Cynarin
Very powerful polyphenol antioxidants that may lower cholesterol levels. Artichokes are very concentrated in cyanarin, which may also help in regeneration of liver tissue.

Caffeic Acid and Chlorogenic Acid
Contains anti-cancer, antimicrobial, anti-LDL (bad cholesterol) and antiviral properties.

Silymarin
A powerful antioxidant that may aid the liver in regenerative tissue growth.

One artichoke contains approximately one fourth of the average adult`s daily fiber requirements. It is also packed with vitamin C, potassium, folic acid and magnesium.

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Study Finds Illness, Medical Bills Root Cause of Majority Of U.S. Bankruptcies

September 2, 2009

Natural News

By S.L. Baker

Unemployment is high and retirement accounts have virtually disappeared for many folks in the wake of the current recession. Housing prices have plummeted, too. So it comes as no surprise that data just released by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts shows the total number of U.S. bankruptcies filed during the first three months of 2009 increased 34.5 percent over the same period in 2008. But what is surprising is a new Harvard study published in the August 2009 issue of The American Journal of Medicine which reveals financial woes starting hitting Americans even before the officially recognized economic downturn — and the main culprit was illness and medical bills.

The results of the first-ever national random-sample survey of bankruptcy filers, conducted by researchers at Cambridge Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Harvard Law School and Ohio University, show that in 2007, 60% of all bankruptcies in the United States were driven by sickness and related medical bills. Moreover, the share of bankruptcies attributable to medical woes over the past few years has been on the upswing.

The investigators surveyed a random national sample of 2,314 bankruptcy filers in 2007, studied their court records and then interviewed 1,032 of these financially strapped people. Bankruptcies were designated as “medical” based on the stated reasons a person had for filing, income loss due to sickness and the amount of their medical bills they owed. By relying on identical definitions in both 2001 and 2007, the researchers concluded that the share of bankruptcies caused by medical problems had soared by almost 50 percent during those years. In fact, the chances a bankruptcy had a medical cause were 2.38 fold higher in 2007 than in 2001.

The results of the research revealed that a variety of circumstances pushed many middle-class Americans over the edge into bankruptcy, even when they had health insurance. For example, 92 percent of the medically bankrupt ended up in that financial state due to high medical bills. And countless families who had health insurance were under-insured, leaving them responsible for thousands of dollars in medical bills they couldn’t pay. In fact, out-of-pocket medical charges averaged just under $18,000 for those who had private insurance and yet went bankrupt due to medical expenses. Uninsured patients were faced with $26,971 in out-of-pocket expenses.

The study’s authors point out that almost all insurance is linked to employment, so a medical illness can trigger both loss of a job and loss of health insurance coverage. Nationally, about a fourth of all companies cancel insurance coverage immediately when an employee suffers a disabling illness and another 25 percent cancel insurance within a year. Of course, losing a job due to the recession also usually means losing health insurance coverage.

“The US health care financing system is broken, and not only for the poor and uninsured. Middle class families frequently collapse under the strain of a health care system that treats physical wounds, but often inflicts fiscal ones,” researcher David U.Himmelstein, M.D., wrote in The American Journal of Medicine article.

Despite the gloom and doom financial news related to medical illness, there is reason to take heart. Bottom line: a change of attitude and a healthier lifestyle can lead to less disease and fewer medical bills — or no medical bills at all. In fact, an editorial previously published in the Journal of the American Medical Association concluded that unhealthy eating habits and sedentary lifestyles represent the most common source of unnecessary death and disease among Americans. Bottom line: most disease is preventable by taking charge of the way you live and how you treat your own body, including what nutrients you put into it.

Unfortunately, according to another study published in the June edition of The American Journal of Medicine, Americans are not following a healthy lifestyle, despite the fact it can save their money and their life. What’s more, the research reveals that there’s actually a decline in healthy living, especially among people of middle age.

Investigators from the Department of Family Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston compared the results of two large studies of Americans conducted between the years of 1988 and 1994 and between 2001 and 2006. They found that during the intervening years, there was a substantial increase in the percentage of adults between the ages of 40 and 74 who decreased their physical activity level and also gained weight. The research subjects were drinking far more alcohol and eating fewer fruits and vegetables, too, as the years rolled by.

Overall, the number of people practicing healthy lifestyle habits had slipped from 15 percent to only eight percent. And the researchers also found that even having cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, or risk factors for those conditions didn’t spur people to make healthy lifestyle choices.

“The potential public health benefits from promoting a healthier lifestyle at all ages, and especially ages 40 and 74 years, are substantial. Regular physical activity and a prudent diet can reduce the risk of premature death and disability from a variety of conditions including coronary heart disease, and are strongly related to the incidence of obesity,” study author Dana E. King, MD, MS, stated in the article. “In the US, medical costs due to physical inactivity and its consequences are estimated at $76 billion in 2000 dollars. Research indicates that individuals are capable of adopting healthy habits in middle age, and making an impact on cardiovascular risk.”

For those who want to make the effort, pursuing a healthy, natural, active lifestyle can reduce the risk of virtually all serious disease. As reported in Natural News, for instance, a previous Harvard study found that following a healthy lifestyle lowers the risk of coronary heart disease by 80 percent and the risk of diabetes by 90 percent. It may also prevent more than half of ischemic strokes.

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Coconuts May Be Nature’s Gatorade

August 16, 2009

ABC News

By Shana Rigby

Dietician: ‘With the Coconut Water, We Actually Have a Mix of Electrolytes’

The word coconut probably brings to mind images of tropical beaches and palm trees. But for hundreds of years the coconut has been a dietary staple for cultures all over the globe.

The coconut has been much maligned in the past for its fat content, but as new information has come out regarding the health benefits of coconuts, products from this functional food have started invading shelves across America.

The coconut is a member of the palm tree family. It’s not a fruit, though it can be found in the produce section — and, despite its name, a coconut is not a tree nut.

Because of that, coconut products are safe for those with tree nut allergies.

The coconut also provides different products at different stages of its gestation.

Young baby coconuts look like green water balloons and are filled with water. Coconut water, unlike coconut milk, contains no fat and more potassium than a banana.

The health benefits of coconut water have been attracting the most attention.

“With the coconut water, we actually have a mix of electrolytes,” says Ashley Koff, a registered dietician. “I like to call coconut water ‘nature’s Gatorade.’”

The electrolytes, with help from the potassium, help the body absorb water better.

“It actually goes straight into our blood stream,” Koff says, “so it’s extremely hydrating.”

Mature coconuts are the kind most consumers are familiar with. They have a hard, hairy shell. They contain milk and oil — and all the fat and protein that have turned people off for years.

“For a long time, when we were hearing about saturated fat, coconut oil was off limits,” says Koff. “But interestingly, the type of fat in here is medium chain fatty acids. And that is a type of fatty acid that goes right through our digestive system, so it’s actually beneficial for us there.”

Because coconut oil has such a higher burn point, higher than olive oil, it is great for cooking.

Though coconuts can be a healthier option, Koff warns, “We do have to be conscious of things like sugar and fat content.”

Coconut water, though it does have sugar, has significantly less sugar than most fruit juices. An 11 oz. container of coconut water contains 15 grams of sugar, but Koff says that’s about as much as in 4 oz. of apple juice.

Coconut products are all over the shelves at the grocery store these days. You can buy raw coconut, coconut water, oil, even yogurt and ice cream.

Coconut milk can be a good alternative for people with dairy allergies.

When buying a raw coconut, check how soft the shell is and give it a good shake. You should hear liquid inside.

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