Food for Thought (Dec.31 – Jan.6)

Food and Health

Some dieters think increasing or cutting back on protein will trick the body's metabolism into causing weight loss. But a new study suggests if you're going to eat a lot, changing the amount of protein in your diet probably won't help you lose weight. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57352169-10391704/calories-count-more-than-protein-for-weight-loss/

Only 20% of the antibiotics sold in the U.S. are given to people who are sick with bacterial infections, such as ear and urinary tract infections and pneumonia. Most of the penicillin, tetracycline and other antibiotic drugs used in this country are given to livestock that are perfectly healthy. http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-antibiotics-agriculture-20120109,0,7336685.story

High-fat foods cause damage to the hypothalamus – an area in the brain responsible for hunger, thirst and the body’s natural rhythms and cycles. http://blog.usfoodsafety.com/2012/01/06/high-fat-foods-cause-brain-scarring/

Food Assistance

Five years ago, New York State stopped requiring that all applicants for food stamps be electronically fingerprinted. Recently, California and Texas ended their requirement, leaving New York City and Arizona the only jurisdictions to continue the stigmatizing requirement.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/opinion/stigmatizing-food-stamps.html?_r=1&ref=welfareus

Gov. Jerry Brown released his budget plan Thursday, proposing more deep cuts to state health and welfare programs next fiscal year while warning that spending on schools, universities and courts will be reduced by billions if California voters refuse to pass his tax proposal in November. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/01/05/BADC1MLEJ6.DTL

Food Safety

Ammoniated beef has taken a real beating in the media over the past couple years, and now fast-food giants McDonald's, Taco Bell and Burger King are no longer using it. http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/01/fast-food-companies-abandon-ammoniated-beef/

According to a recent Canadian study, people from well-educated families are almost twice as likely to suffer from some dangerous food allergies as others — possibly because their bodies’ natural defenses have been lowered by rigorous hygiene and infection control. http://blog.usfoodsafety.com/2012/01/04/food-allergies-linked-to-hygiene-hypothesis/

The first ever lawsuit concerning risks of nanotechnology was filed in federal court last month when several groups jointly sued the US Food and Drug Administration for its lack of response to a 2006 petition demanding that products with nanomaterials be labeled and their affects tested for safety. http://www.infowars.com/fda-sued-over-lack-of-nanotech-oversight-labels/