Food Research: What’s wrong with the food system? ♦ Steeping temperature and time may affect antioxidants in tea ♦ Health labels influence flavor perception

Health labels influence flavor perception Researchers found that food labels influence the perception of flavor. Light products are considered less tasty. Researchers at a flavor lab organized a flavor experiment with young Gouda cheese for a test audience of 129 people. Without knowing it, the participants tasted the same cheese several times, but each time with a different label, such as 'light' or 'reduced salt'

What’s wrong with the food system? According to the government of Canada, one in eight Canadians will come down with a case of foodborne illness this year. How is it possible that so many Canadians fall victim to a preventable condition? According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the situation is worse in the United States.

Another 'whey' to improve your health in the New Year?

Adding calcium, Vitamin D and prebiotic dietary fibre to a beverage made of whey can have huge health benefits for those who drink it.

Steeping temperature and time may affect antioxidants in tea Tea is the most highly consumed beverage in the world next to water. The methods of preparing the beverage varies throughout the world and also depends on the type of tea. Researchers found that the temperature and length of time tea leaves are steeped affects their antioxidant properties and differs across types of tea

Health News: FDA may soon change labels to slash your added sugar intake ♦ Exploring the paradox of metabolically healthy obesity ♦Temporary ambulance locations reduces response times

FDA may soon change labels to slash your added sugar intake A high-sugar diet has been associated with all kinds of negative health impacts, from obesity to diabetes to high blood pressure. Now, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is nearing a decision on a new proposal that could help people cut down on their sugar intake.

Exploring the paradox of metabolically healthy obesity Researchers have defined some key characteristics of the metabolically healthy obese -- those obese individuals who remain free from type 2 diabetes and other disorders, that usually associate with obesity. Their findings have implications for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance and obesity

New disease-carrying mosquito arrives in British Columbia, Canada Scientists are studying an invasive, disease-carrying mosquito, Aedes japonicus, after finding it for the first time in Western Canada. The mosquitoes could pose a significant hazard to health if global warming favors the development of some of the viruses it can transmit.

Temporary ambulance locations reduces response times and may save lives Ambulances deployed at temporary locations that can be changed depending on the time of day and accident statistics can reduce response time and may save lives on the way to the hospital.

9/10/14 Health News: Man tied to deadly 2012 meningitis outbreak arrested ♦ Airline caterers say food vulnerable ♦ GREEN COFFEE EXTRACT ♦ Confusing Chicken Labels

Man tied to deadly 2012 meningitis outbreak arrested

U.S. officials on Thursday arrested a pharmacist linked to a 2012 outbreak of meningitis, which killed 64 people across the United States, as he was boarding a flight out of the country, Justice Department officials in Boston said. Continue Reading

Report: 1 in 4 airline caterers say food carts vulnerable

According to USA Today,  nearly one in four airline catering workers — 24% — say unauthorized people could get into their kitchens and trucks, and the same percentage warned that someone could place contraband on a food cart, according to a survey obtained by USA TODAY. Continue Reading

FTC SETTLEMENT WITH GREEN COFFEE EXTRACT MAKER INCLUDES $3.5-MILLION FINE

TV’s Dr. Oz says that he personally believes unroasted green coffee is a “miracle” and a “fat-burner,” but he accepts no money for promoting it. He is also very specific in saying that consumers should purchase only those green coffee extracts carrying either the Green Coffee Antioxidant (GCA®) or Svetol® trademarks. Austin, TX-based Applied Food... Continue Reading

9 most confusing words on Chicken Labels

If you’ve been worrying about antibiotics in meat and antibiotic-resistant superbugs, good news: Perdue Farms says it will no longer routinely inject antibiotics into eggs about to hatch, NPR reports. Continue Reading

11/15/13 Health News: E Coli Vaccine, Raw Milk Warning Labels, Dolphin Virus Outbreak, MRSA Declines

E. COLI VACCINE PILOT PROGRAM PROPOSED BY FOOD SAFETY COOPERATIVE

Food safety cooperative VeriPrime has proposed a pilot program that would test the preventive effectiveness of E. coli vaccines in cattle and expand their use. “We’re looking to reduce E. coli in beef and E. coli in the environment as well,” said veterinarian Scott Crain, VeriPrime founder and CEO. The five-year on-farm intervention would begin by... Continue Reading

SD RAW MILK MAY SOON GET NEW TESTING AND WARNING LABELS

The direct farm-to-consumer sale of raw milk in South Dakota is about to come with a short, blunt warning. Containers will soon carry labels stating: “Warning: Raw milk. This product has not been pasteurized and may contain harmful bacteria.” At the same time, South Dakota will increase the maximum allowed bacteria count per milliliter to... Continue Reading

Dolphin virus outbreak in Atlantic is deadliest ever

The deadliest known outbreak of a measles-like virus in bottlenose dolphins has killed a record number of the animals along the US Atlantic coast since July, officials said Friday.

A total of 753 bottlenose dolphins have washed up from New York to Florida from July 1 until November 3, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said. continue reading

MRSA Declines in Veteran's Hospitals Nationwide

Five years after implementing a national initiative to reduce methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) rates in Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers, MRSA cases have continued to decline, according to a study in the November issue of the American Journal of Infection Control.

In the two-year period following the first wave of the initiative both MRSA transmissions and HAIs continued to decrease in non-ICU settings (declining an additional 13.7 percent and 44.8 percent, respectively), while holding steady in ICUs. The MRSA Prevention Initiative utilizes a bundled approach that includes screening every patient for MRSA, use of gowns and gloves when caring for patients colonized or infected with MRSA, hand hygiene, .Continue Reading

European Union approves Laser Etching on Fruit

This is an alternative to paper labels. They will use iron 0xide and hydroxides, hydroxprophl methyl cellulose and polysorbates to mark some fruits on the peel with a laser.  The law specifically approves the use of the technology of the Spanish firm  Laser Food.

The laser process can put all the information that is of interest to the grocery store as well as the consumer. It can even print the barcode. this would be useful in case of recalls because sometimes paper labels come off. The regulation will apply to all EU states.

I would not mind this on watermelon or bananas but sense I personally eat the peel on apples and kiwifruit.