Steven Blair of the Cooper Institute says overweight but fit people carry half the death rate of normal-weight people who are unfit. Being fit here means not smoking, moving 30 minutes a day, carrying no major risk factors, and keeping a waist under 35 inches for women, 40 for men.
Food Consumer
Government
Who should get H1N1 vaccine?
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices sets out which groups should receive the H1N1 monovalent vaccine first, naming target groups totalling an estimated 159 million people. The recommendations weigh July 2009 epidemiologic data against the supply expected from mid-October.
Vitamins
Low vitamin D doubles heart risk in diabetics
Washington University researchers report in Circulation that vitamin D deficiency may double cardiovascular risk in people with diabetes. Without enough vitamin D, macrophage cells take up cholesterol they cannot clear, which builds up in blood vessels and stiffens them.
Minerals
Drinking too much cola may induce potassium deficiency
Greek researchers reviewed cases of people who drank 2 to 10 quarts of cola a day and developed potassium deficiency, with effects from fatigue and muscle weakness to paralysis; one man who drank 10 quarts daily suffered lung paralysis. They suspect caffeine and sugar are involved.
Watch-List
Forced folic acid fortification not justified
Irish researchers tested blood from 20 mothers and 20 infants and found folic acid in most samples was not fully metabolized, suggesting voluntary fortification already supplies enough and that mandatory fortification is not warranted. The study appears in BMC Public Health.
Dining
More Fruits & Veggies: Talk But No Action
Karen Collins reports that among Americans aged 40 to 74, the share meeting the five-a-day minimum for fruits and vegetables fell from 42 percent in the 1988-1994 NHANES to 26 percent in 2001-2006, while telephone surveys found essentially no change over 15 years.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes:Turn Ripe Tomatoes into Bruschetta
Dana Jacobi explains that bruschetta is a grilled slice of crusty rustic bread rubbed with garlic and drizzled with oil, distinct from crostini, which may be toasted or pan-fried and carry more refined toppings. She recommends chopping your own tomatoes, garlic and basil instead of buying a topping.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes: St. Tropez Ratatouille
AICR's version of the French classic pairs eggplant and zucchini for texture, fiber, potassium, magnesium and vitamins A and C. Mashed anchovy adds depth, thyme brings a lemony-mint note and a little cayenne adds zest; the recipe invites variations.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes: Scots Oatcakes
Dana Jacobi uses Scottish oatcakes to teach baking fats: solid butter and shortening trap air and hold a cookie's shape, oils coat flour proteins for a tender crumb, and new palm-oil shortening sticks skip hydrogenation and its trans fats.
Disease
CDC: West Nile virus has infected 82 Americans and killed 2 so far this year
The CDC has received reports of 82 West Nile infections from 20 states, with Mississippi, Texas, California and Nevada reporting the most. About 80 percent of those infected show no symptoms; people over 50 and those with weakened immune systems face the highest risk of encephalitis or meningitis.
Drug
Government Report Supports Gardisil Efficacy
A government analysis of more than 12,000 young women vaccinated between June 2006 and December 2008 found Gardasil safe, estimating 59 adverse reactions per 100,000 vaccinated, most commonly fainting. Some doctors remain hesitant about routine vaccination at ages 11 and 12.
Lifestyle
Cigarettes and Taste Buds: A Volatile Relationship
A study of 62 soldiers at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki found the 28 smokers had fewer, flatter taste buds with reduced blood supply and scored significantly lower on taste tests than the 34 non-smokers. A 2007 Duke study found milk, water, fruit and vegetables worsen the taste of cigarettes.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes: Thai Fried Rice with Vegetables
This fried rice swaps white rice for brown and wild rice, keeping the bran and germ, and seasons crisp vegetables with garlic, lime, honey, basil, mint and hot sauce. Peanuts supply the flavor that completes the Thai taste.
Drug
Nutracoastal Trading LLC expands recall of Steam dietary supplement
Nutracoastal Trading has widened its July 2009 recall of the supplement STEAM after finding a lot containing tadalafil, an erectile dysfunction drug ingredient. The company says the undeclared ingredient can dangerously lower blood pressure in people taking nitrates. No illnesses are known.
Miscellaneous
Can $300 Cover Back-to-School Shopping?
A satirical column on back-to-school shopping with a $300 budget, roughly an unemployment check, where $75 jeans and a $39 burnout top eat a third of it, and on an economy the writer says still runs on buying things people cannot afford.
Food
Dietary Intervention Shows Neuroprotection
Aged rats ate chow containing 2, 6 or 9 percent walnuts, or none, for eight weeks before motor and memory testing; a moderate amount, but not a high one, helped performance. The 6 percent diet matches about an ounce, or 7 to 9 walnuts, a day for a person.
Diet
"Alkali Load" May Help Conserve Bone and Muscle
An ARS-funded study put 19 healthy adults over 50 on controlled high- and low-protein diets, with nine taking potassium bicarbonate to mimic about 14 daily servings of fruit and vegetables. Researchers measured blood, urine, calcium absorption and bone and muscle markers after each diet period.
Food
Benefits of Compound in Turmeric Spice Studied
Over 12 weeks, 18 mice ate control, high-fat or curcumin-supplemented high-fat diets. Adding curcumin reduced body-weight gain and total body fat without changing food intake, and those mice grew fewer blood vessels in fat tissue, a team led by Mohsen Meydani found.
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