The Cornucopia Institute graded every member of Congress on GMO labeling and transparency votes. In the House, 88 members earned an A or B while 197 scored zero and received an F; in the Senate, 29 earned an A or B and 47 got failing grades.
Food Consumer
Vitamins
Vitamin D may help diabetes mellitus patients
In a randomised trial, type 2 diabetes patients took 4,000 IU of cholecalciferol daily if their serum vitamin D was below 20 ng/mL, or 2,000 IU if it was 20 to 30 ng/mL, for 16 weeks. The researchers found supplementation improved endothelial function.
Advisories
Homeopathic Teething Tablets and Gels: FDA Warning - Risk to Infants and Children
FDA warns that homeopathic teething tablets and gels may pose a risk to infants and children, citing adverse events including seizures reported since a 2010 alert. The products are not FDA-evaluated for safety or efficacy, and the agency tells consumers to stop using and discard them.
Advisories
FDA Investigates Sammy’s Milk Baby Food (Infant Formula)
FDA warns consumers not to buy or use Sammy's Milk Baby Food powdered infant formula, saying Graceleigh, Inc. did not make it under federal infant formula rules. The product was never tested for Cronobacter and may lack adequate iron; all of it is being recalled.
Drug
FDA warns against the use of homeopathic teething tablets and gels
FDA warned that homeopathic teething tablets and gels may pose a risk to infants and children, telling consumers to stop using them and dispose of any they have. The agency is analyzing reports of seizures and other adverse events and testing product samples.
Vitamins
Cancer patients may need thiamine supplements
Among 217 cancer inpatients referred for psychiatric consultation at a large cancer center, 55.3 percent were thiamine deficient, a Psycho-Oncology study found. The authors link it largely to fluorouracil-based chemotherapy and weight loss, and urge oncologists to watch for it.
Minerals
Potassium intake lowers kidney stone risk
Data from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study and both Nurses' Health Studies link dairy protein to lower kidney stone risk and meat protein to 15% to 20% higher risk. Potassium intake was tied to almost 56% lower risk, which the piece attributes to eating more vegetables.
Drug
Request to FDA to Ban Triclosan in Toothpaste (Toxic Carcinogen Already Banned in Soap)
The Cornucopia Institute has asked FDA to ban triclosan from toothpaste as it did for hand soaps on September 6, citing links to skin irritation, endocrine disruption, breast cancer, childhood allergies and weakened muscle function. It also published a toothpaste scorecard.
Food
Food News: Exceptional Vegan Cuisine
Vege USA promotes its Vegetarian Plus frozen entrees, among them citrus sparerib cutlets, kung pao chicken and black pepper steaks. The company says the line is vegan, made with non-GMO soy protein and free of cholesterol and MSG.
Food
Beet root juice helps fight breast cancer
In lab tests, rat heart cells and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells treated with beet root juice alongside doxorubicin showed less heart cell death and more cancer cell death. The authors say lower juice concentrations gave the best mix of heart protection and anticancer effect.
Diet
Mediterranean diet cuts risk of heart failure
Among 37,308 men in the Cohort of Swedish Men who were free of cardiovascular disease at baseline, high adherence to a Mediterranean diet was associated with up to 31% lower risk of developing heart failure and 45% lower risk of dying from it.
Politics
What Has Monsanto Done to Argentina's Children? Newsletter 092916 from Organic Consumers Association
An Organic Consumers Association newsletter about “Transgenic Wars,” a film on the Argentine village of Avia Terai, where residents blame Roundup sprayed on surrounding GMO soy for birth defects and illness, plus an alert on EPA's handling of atrazine.
Drug
Drugs that cause liver injury or damage
The piece argues that Google Scholar searches make dietary supplements look like the main cause of liver injury, when many government-approved drugs can damage the liver too, and points readers to a U.S. government website with detailed reports on drugs, herbals and supplements.
Food
Eating eggs linked to high risk of diabetes mellitus
A meta-analysis of 12 studies in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found no consistent link between egg consumption and type 2 diabetes overall, though in US studies people eating three or more eggs a week showed 39% higher risk. It cannot prove eggs are the cause.
Supplements
Chenpi extract prevents diabetes mellitus, obesity
Rutgers researchers fed obesity-prone mice a high-fat diet with 0.25% or 0.5% chenpi extract for 15 weeks; those mice escaped the obesity, fatty liver and diabetic symptoms seen on the diet alone. The effect tracked with AMPK activation in fat tissue.
Healthy Recipes from AICR
Healthy Recipes: Pumpkin Spice Overnight Oats
An overnight oats recipe with rolled oats, almond milk, Greek yogurt, flaxseed, pumpkin puree and autumn spices, prepped in five minutes the night before. One serving has 330 calories, 17 grams of protein and 8 grams of fibre.
Food
Eating corn oil, soybean oil may increase ovarian cancer risk?
A study of 65,590 women in the Nurses' Health Studies found high recent polyunsaturated fat intake linked to a 45% higher ovarian cancer risk, though the link weakened to a non-significant 20% for cumulative intake. The authors call it an association, not proof of cause.
Alerts
Tyson Foods Inc. Recalls Chicken Nugget Products Due To Possible Foreign Matter Contamination
About 132,520 pounds of fully cooked Panko chicken nuggets made July 18, 2016 may contain hard plastic, possibly from a rod connecting a transfer belt, which metal detectors cannot catch. Five-pound bags went to retail nationally and 20-pound cases to Pennsylvania institutions.
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