A new method of studying the bone-wasting disease osteoporosis
highlights the inability of dietary approaches such as calcium
supplements when it comes to triggering the growth of new bone.
Researchers evaluating the link between diet and risk for dementia
have failed to confirm the role of saturated fat in higher risk of
the mental illness. But they stress that further studies may be
needed to reach any conclusions.
Despite the recent evidence showing that B vitamins and folic acid
supplements could protect against the onset of heart disease,
researchers from Australia say they have found no link between
blood folate levels and death from heart...
With new probiotic-containing dairy foods reaching the market every
week, a European research project is looking at how the
manufacturing process is key to an effective end-product.
Key findings of a new survey from the Department of Health in the
UK reveal that the government and the food industry still have a
long way to go before the UK population has registered the
five-a-day message.
Locating specific Lactobacilli strains could lead to the
development of new treatments for intestinal inflammations and
infections, report researchers working on an EU-funded project on
probiotics.
An easy-to-use tool for the detection of gluten in foods will be
developed in an EU-funded project designed to help people with
coeliac disease avoid problem foods.
A popular health supplement taken with antioxidant vitamins may
help prevent atherosclerosis, or blockage of the blood vessels, say
researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles.
European researchers involved in the Eurobesity project are
assessing the candidate genes that might be involved in obesity to
find out why some people prefer a high-fat diet and others do not.
A study on the effects of fatty diets on puppies, could provide
valuable insights into how oxidised fat affects growing children,
report researchers this month. The team found that even those fed a
moderate level of oxidised lipids...
Reducing fat intake during puberty could help lower the risk of
breast cancer later on, report researchers in today's Journal of
the National Cancer Institute.
There is strong evidence that heart disease may be caused by
vitamin D deficiency, according to researchers from the University
of Bonn in Germany, who have been studying the causes of cardiac
failure. They report that there is a...
While some believe that people should increase their intake of
potassium, scientists warn in a recent issue of the BMJ that
in the high risk population that may benefit most from an increased
intake of the mineral, several medical...
Research into the hazards and risks of taking dietary supplements
should be a priority, according to US researchers who assessed the
adverse events caused by natural supplements.
Scientists in Spain have identified a gene in ripe strawberries
that could help create vitamin-enriched food in the future,
according to a report by ABC News. The gene encodes an
enzyme in strawberry plants that helps to convert a...
British food producers and retailers will have to comply with
strict criteria if they wish to use the new 5-A-DAY logo, to be
launched by the UK government's Department of Health, on their
packaging, the government said on Friday.
People who restrict their calorie intake may not only prevent
cardiovascular disease and cancer, but could also protect their
mental health, say researchers in the US, who claim they have found
significant results in a study on calorie-restricted...
Despite the widely held belief that adolescents who come from
higher-income families tend to be less obese than comparable
children from families with less income, a new study suggests that
this may not be uniformly true for both...
Having a drink at least three times a week may help protect men
from heart attacks, report researchers in the US in this week's
New England Journal of Medicine. The observational study,
which tracked the drinking habits of nearly...
Mothers who supplement their diet with fatty acids rich in
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) during pregnancy and lactation may
increase the IQ of their children, say researchers in this month's
Pediatrics journal.
Drinks containing caffeine can significantly affect children's
behaviour, report scientists in the US, who found that teenagers
who drink lots of fizzy drinks have trouble sleeping. They suggest
that such drinks are made less...
Eating fruit and vegetables rich in the antioxidant lutein may
improve eyesight in people with age-related cataracts, suggest
researchers in Spain reporting on results from a two-year study.
The team noted that vitamin E did not produce...
Taking a combination of different fatty acids in supplements may
improve cholesterol levels in healthy women, and lower their risk
of heart attack, report Canadian researchers in the recent issue of
the American Journal of Clinical...
The Scottish government has launched a major long-term campaign to
improve the diet of its population in a bid to combat the nation's
poor record in health problems. The campaign includes an extra
investment of £40 million (€61.5m)...
Obesity and being overweight in adulthood are associated with large
decreases in life expectancy and increases in early mortality,
according to the latest research. The report, published in this
month's Annals of Internal Medicine,...
Some soybean varieties may be able to improve the nutritional
levels of women who are marginally iron deficient, suggest US
researchers who have been studying iron bioavailability in
different varieties of the seed.
Eating fish may help to reverse some of the damage caused by
smoking, according to new research by scientists in Ireland. The
researchers found that taurine, an amino acid present in fish,
restored normal vessel function in smokers,...
In what is likely to prove controversial, researchers in India have
almost completed development of genetically modified protein-rich
potatoes, designed to tackle malnutrition among poor Indian
children.
Drinking black tea may lower the risk of heart disease, report
researchers who studied the link between the beverage and heart
health in Saudi Arabians.
New methods to analyse the essential B vitamin folate, both in
foods and in blood products, are being developed by scientists to
help in setting recommended folate levels.
A homeopathic cold remedy derived from zinc significantly reduces
the severity and duration of common cold symptoms, even when
treatment is started as late as the second day of illness, finds a
new study.
A new study calls into question the use of supplements for people
with high blood pressure. The latest research suggests that vitamin
A and E could both raise blood pressure levels, although it
confirms the benefits of vitamin C.
New evidence suggests that nicotine may not only cause addiction
but the compound and its derivatives could also promote cancer
development and progression. The findings, which support other
recent results, could lead to an evaluation...
Men who eat fish once a month or more have a reduced risk of
ischemic stroke, compared with those who eat fish less often,
according to researchers reporting in a recent issue of The
Journal of the American Medical Association. Even...
Adding high-dose calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D, to
weekly treatment with the chemotherapy agent docetaxel (Taxotere)
appears to improve the therapeutic response in men with
androgen-independent prostate cancer without compromising...
Parents should beware the many new fruit-based drinks on the market
as children are drinking less of the healthier pure fruit juice,
suggests new research published in the Journal of the American
Dietetic Association.
Farm-raised fish eating specially formulated diets high in fatty
acids could improve people's health and also satisfy different
palates, according to US researchers who are testing additives of
conjugated linoleic acid, an omega-6...
A beer a day may help keep heart attacks away, according to a group
of Israeli researchers. In preliminary clinical studies of a group
of men with coronary artery disease, the researchers showed that
drinking one beer every day for...
A survey of supplement use among more than 45,000 American men and
women shows that many people are self-treating medical conditions
with natural remedies. The authors urged doctors to be aware of the
the conditions their patients...
The popular herbal remedy kava, commonly used to treat stress and
anxiety, has been banned in the UK by the Medicines Control Agency
(MCA) following concerns that it can lead to liver poisoning. The
UK previously issued a voluntary...
A public health initiative to enrich cereal grain foods in Canada
with folic acid has halved the prevalence of neural-tube defects
among both unborn and newborn children, report authors of a
research letter in this week's issue...
A collaborative global effort has resulted in the completion of an
advanced draft, or blueprint, of the rice genome. Officials at the
US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the National Science
Foundation (NSF) and the Department of...
Scientists at the University of Southampton in the UK have received
funding to study whether genes can influence the benefits gained by
some people from dietary antioxidants. The team is hoping to find
out why some people benefit...
Alcohol consumption does not appear to be associated with the risk
of lung cancer, at least among light to moderate drinkers,
according to a study in the latest issue of the Journal of the
National Cancer Institute.
A chemical found in chocolate could lead to a new breed of cough
treatments, according to research presented at the British Thoracic
Society's Winter Meeting in London earlier this month.
Cholesterol-lowering phytosterols can even be added to so-called
unhealthy foods and still have a positive effect on heart health,
according to a study published in last month's British Journal
of Nutrition. People with raised...
Echinacea, currently one of the most popular herbal remedies in
Europe, taken to treat the common cold, had no effect when tested
on a small group of students with colds, report researchers in the
US.
The burden of heart failure will continue to increase substantially
over the next 20 years, concludes a study in Heart. The
increase will be most noticeable among men - the numbers with heart
failure in Scotland will grow by 31 per...
