Free range egg expose

"A Five News investigation has discovered chickens being kept in terrible conditions on a Norfolk poultry farm. Five's Crime Correspondent Jason Farrell went undercover to expose the appalling conditions in one farm which produces free range eggs." (Five.tv) Crime Correspondent, Jason Farrell's blog.

In Defence of Food

There is an interesting book review at Times Online.

The title reviewed is "In Defence of Food" by Michael Pollan.

Top quote from the article "The true scandal of these quasi-foods, for Pollan, is that many of them are allowed to arrive with jumped-up health claims. No cholesterol! Low fat! Low salt! Far from being contested by the official nutrition advice of the government and medical establishment, the rise of the “edible foodlike substance” in the 1970s and 1980s was actually sanctioned by them. Pollan abhors what he calls “nutritionism”, the reduction of food to mere nutrients."

Even if you do not feel the need to buy the book, the article [by Bee Wilson], at the above link, is a great read.

Possible dangers of cooked fats

Research about the danger, or otherwise, of acrylamide has appeared for some years.
In the latest chapter, BBC News reports new research which suggests that, "Women who eat crisps or chips every day may double their chances of ovarian or womb cancer, say scientists." [Full article @BBC]

Previous news articles, at BBC, about acrylamide research:
Cooking chemical 'no cancer risk' - 16 march 05
Food chemical cleared of cancer link - 29 January 03

Press release, regarding the latest research by University of Maastricht, published in "Cancer, Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention", which posits a link between acrylamides in the diet and risk of cancer, can be found at the following link:
Acrylamide in food possibly increases the risk of endometrial and ovarian cancer

How compassionate is your supermarket?

Every two years Compassion in World Farming carries out a detailed survey of UK supermarket performance on farm animal welfare.
This website presents the 2007 results. We hope it will help you understand what matters most to farm animals and how you can make a difference to their lives.

Compassion in World Farming won this year's BBC Radio Award for Best Food Campaigner/Educator 2007. BBC Radio 4 Food and Farming Awards

Technorati Tags: food, health, compassion, animal welfare

National Salt Awareness Week 2008

28th January to 3rd February 2008

Salt Awareness Week 2008 will focus on Salt and Children. Research has shown that reducing children's salt intake by half results in immediate falls in blood pressure, which in turn could lead to major reductions in the risk of developing stroke, heart attacks and heart failure later in life. It is well established that the higher the blood pressure in childhood, the higher the blood pressure in adulthood. Therefore, anything that lowers blood pressure in children is likely to reduce the number of people developing high blood pressure later in life. A high salt intake has also been linked to adverse effects such as: failure to reach peak bone mass predisposing to osteoporosis; aggravation of asthma; predisposition to stomach cancer; and it could also influence the development of obesity.

Full details

Possible Food Frauds

"Made with whole grains! Real Fruit! Strengthen your body’s defenses! Food marketers are seemingly stopping at nothing to convince consumers that fairly ordinary products like waffles, green tea, and jam hold the secret to better health. But according to the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), these claims are often misleading, and are popping up all over the grocery store, from the chip aisle to the dairy case. Not even the baby food aisle is safe from fraudulent health claims, says the group." (Full article at CSPI)

An interesting read which discusses claims by Kellog, Gerber, Sara Lee - the full list can be found at foodfrauds

E128 or red 2G - additive warning

BBC News reports that:

An additive used in some sausages and burgers could cause cancer, food safety experts have warned.

The European Food Safety Authority has expressed concern about the use of the colouring E128, also known as Red 2G.

Its expert panel on food additives has recommended that the dye should no longer be considered safe for human consumption. Link

More information can be found here.

Organic foods have more antioxidants and better for the heart

Organic fruit and vegetables may be better for you than conventionally grown crops, US research suggests.

A ten-year study comparing organic tomatoes with standard produce found almost double the level of flavonoids - a type of antioxidant. Full article - BBC News

Peter Melchett of the Soil Association concurred, "These findings also confirm recent European research, which showed that organic tomatoes, peaches and processed apples all have higher nutritional quality than non-organic."

The article in New Scientist reports that "according to the new findings, levels of the flavonoids quercetin and kaempferol were found to be on average 79 and 97 per cent higher, respectively, in organic tomatoes." read more - New Scientist

Technorati Tags: organic, nutrition, heart, food, diet

Palaeolithic (Stone Age) diet

A new study, from Lund University, suggests that a Palaeolithic diet could help people avoid diabetes.

The Palaeolithic diet, popularly labelled "the stone age diet", is said to include fruits, nuts, vegetables, fish and lean meat. Coming before the advent of farming, it did not include dairy products, refined sugars and fats, or grains.

Technorati Tags: nutrition, research, food, diet, health, diabetes

Superfood ban under EU rules

Products claiming to be superfoods will be banned under new EU rules coming into effect on Sunday - unless the claim can be proved.

Blueberries, salmon, spinach and soy have all been hailed as so-called superfoods - foods rich in nutrients.

Some say superfoods can protect against cancer and heart disease, but others say there is no evidence for this.

The new laws will apply to all food or drink products made or sold for human consumption within EU nations. BBC News

Excellent! I feel the EU legislation is bang on with this one. The term "Super Foods" has gotten out of hand. It now seems to be more about the ludicrous fads of "celebrity" nutritionists, and maximising profit, than real healthy eating. The less we hear from these bandwagon jumping "celebrity" fadists the better.

Technorati Tags: wholefood, food, nutrition, superfood