Nutrition Wonderland

Have we figured out what is causing honeybee colony collapse disorder?

13. October 2010

The New York Times recently reported on a new discovery in understanding the devastating phenomenon of bee colony collapse disorder (CCD). Apparently a cocktail of a rare fungus and a virus have been teaming up to decimate bee populations. Image credit: emrank, flickr

Why the SOLE Food Movement is Failing

12. October 2010

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A friend of mine sent me an article from a publication called Zocalo that reviews American Terroir: Savoring the Flavors of Our Woods, Waters, and Fields by Rowan Jacobsen. I'm not going to review this title (you can read the one from the Zocalo here) nor am I going to pick on Jacobsen. I'm sure his book is an interesting take on terroir foods as he calls them, picking up where Pollan's Botany of Desire left off. What I am going to do is explain why I think this book represents another step backwards in gaining wider acceptance of SOLE foods.

Vitamin B3 Niacin (Niaspan) beats Zetia as Heart Medication

11. October 2010

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I know this information is already about a year out of date but I thought it might be worth republishing (as I just ran into this article and study this last weekend.) At the 2009 meeting of the American Heart Association, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that niacin (vitamin B3) treatments worked better than the Merck prescription drug Zetia at reducing the size of arterial blockages in the neck.

Obesity Rates in America Continue to Rise, Adenovirus May Play Role

21. September 2010

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The latest examination of obesity rates by the CDC comes to some sobering conclusions about the state of public health in America. Their findings show a block of states, mostly concentrated in the South, now have obesity rates over 30%. Back in 1990, no states were over 20%, making the run-up in the last 20 years remarkable.

Neurophotonics Coming to a Human Being Near You

20. September 2010

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Researchers at SMU are working with DARPA (the US hyper-advanced military research group that initially developed the internet) to create an artificial fiber optic signaling system that will directly interface with your body's central nervous system. This technology, called neurophotonics, would allow bidirectional communication to and from the brain, giving amputees with prosthetic arms and legs the ability to feel heat, cold and pain in those artificial extremities.

Food Safety Legislation S.510 Stalled by One Senator

17. September 2010

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Ezra Klein's excellent blog on the Washington Post website highlights a Politico story today about the status of the long awaited food safety legislation (s.510). It is currently being held up by one senator, Tom Coburn (R) of Oklahoma. Here is the latest:

Winds of Change: Antibiotics in Livestock

16. September 2010

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The New York Times has a really good piece on the coming rules regarding the amount of antibiotics that can be given to confinement livestock. Now, after decades of debate, the Food and Drug Administration appears poised to issue its strongest guidelines on animal antibiotics yet, intended to reduce what it calls a clear risk [...]

Entering the Genetic Age: Enviropig and GMO animals

15. September 2010

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The October 2010 edition of Popular Science landed in my mailbox today with a brief overview of the genetically modified Enviropig. I would give you a direct link but, for some reason, Popular Science does not publish its magazine articles online. It’s not that big of a deal because the article isn’t even good enough to [...]

Corn Sugar: HFCS by a different name?

14. September 2010

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There was an article in the Cleveland daily today about The Corn Refiners Association, the lobbying arm of corn agribusiness, petitioning the FDA to rename high fructose corn syrup, 'Corn Sugar'.